Allotted Design
by Novacaine Remix
Summary: Envy Culus, son of Dante, spends his HS years being bullied for his obvious difference, until the fateful night when the tables turned. Believed to have ran away, Envy poses as his brother Wrath at a new prepschool what happens when he falls in love with
1. Chapter 1

**Title:** Allotted Design.

**Pairing:** None as of yet; some to come; most all involving Envy.

**Rating:** Currently standing at... a PG-16, most likely, for language. But the chapters will hop between PG and NC17.

**Plot:** Bullied for his obvious _difference, _Envy abandons all hope of fitting in, and drops out of High School. Deciding that she's had enough, Dante ships her two sons off to a preparatory school.

"Faggot," Another blow to the stomach, "Fucking faerie boy. I thought I told yah that yew ain't welcome around here no more! Don't want you gettin' no ideas about suckin' our cocks!" And another.

"I would never go anywhere near your dicks!" I retorted, only earning myself another kick to my already bruised ribs.

Once he had finished his _oh righteous_ beating, and sauntered off, pants hanging low to his knees, to a circle of his friends, I rose strongly to my feet, brushing dirt from my pants. I moved as quickly as I could to gather the items littered around the pavement, and returned them to their usual spot in my bag, not bothering to check to see if everything was there. They only ever stole one thing; my cigarettes, which ironically enough was the reason for this particular beating in the first place.

Giving in to a craving for my long time favourite pass-time, I'd snuck out of the house and made way to a secluded and locally well known authority free area to indulge myself, expecting to be alone at such a time in the night. Boy, was I wrong.

The short walk home was less eventful; the quiet after the storm, if you will; just how I like it.

"Envy! Envy!" I could hear my greeting before even turning onto our weed littered lawn; bare feet running across the tiled floor, and then two eyes framed in tousled hair peering through a hole in the curtains.

The slightly smaller boy threw himself against me, almost knocking us back down onto the lawn, and I laughed.

"Hell, Wrath; what's got you going this time?" I ruffled his hair, and stepped past, heading inside. The loud music from below vibrated the kitchen floor, and I knew.

"Greed's drunk again." The solemn voice behind me spoke. I nodded, stepping over the carelessly tossed shoes on the doormat, barely taking notice of the red high heels.

"D'you think mom knows he brings different women home all the time?"

"How could she not?" I started up the narrow stairs, "I mean, more often than not you can hear them down there, no matter how loud the music is." Wrath's silence was enough of an agreement.

Falling comfortingly into the closet of a room that I'd dubbed my own, bag dropped into its regular place by the door, I collapsed onto the mattress. The door clicked shut behind Wrath.

"Hey, Envy? You're not going to turn out like Greed, are you?" He was avoiding my eyes again.

"Oh, Wrath, I'd never let that happen. Don't worry." I smiled assuringly, and he seemed happy with my answer, burying himself happily amongst my mismatched blankets, almost immediately dozing off.

Once his breathing fell shallow, I rose from the bed, careful not to disturb him, and stripped myself of the daily attire, donning a pair of baggy plaid pants.

When I awoke the next morning, Wrath was already gone, and I could hear Dante yelling from downstairs. Immediately fearing she fought with Wrath, I tore to the top of the staircase, until I could hear Greed's mumbled responses to Dante's accusations.

Wrath was where I should have anticipated him being; barred in his bedroom, attached to his TV and video games. When he'd come home with the second hand PlayStation 2 over a month ago, I'd questioned myself as to where it came from, considering that he'd never have to money to purchase such an item, but in fear I would find out he had stolen it, I didn't ask.

"Why did you leave?" I leaned heavily against the cool doorframe, knowing the answer before he opened his mouth.

"You kick too much." He stuck out his tongue, grunting in determination, fingers working a frenzy across the colourful buttons of the controller.

After preparing myself for another day in the hells of High School, I was trudging down the staircase when confronted by Dante at the bottom. Avoiding her eyes, I tried to sneak past her, but she jumped aside to block my path.

"Envy! Why didn't you tell me that your father had another woman in _my _house?"

"Because Dante, I didn't want to get involved," I tried to get past her again. "The same reason as last time, and the time before."

She grabbed my wrist, and twisted, bringing me to the floor. "Don't use that tone with me! And what did I tell you about calling me Dante?" She raised a boney hand, threateningly emphasizing her point.

"Not like you've ever been any sort of a _mother_ to us!" I spat, seeing but not fully acknowledging her hand until my head snapped to the side under the force from her palm. I moved to retaliate, but before I could Wrath bounded down the stairs, and grabbing me on his way past, tore out the front door. I followed his lead, and we ran far from the house, ignoring her screams for us to come back.

A block and a half away, I staggered to a halt, wheezing for breath.

"You need to exercise more." Wrath hovered over me, grinning cheekily.

"Oh, I think I get quite enough trying to keep up with you."


	2. Chapter 2

**Title:** Allotted Design.

**Pairing:** None as of yet; some to come; most all involving Envy.

**Rating:** Currently standing at 18, probably, for language and violence.

**Plot:** Bullied for his obvious _difference, _Envy abandons all hope of fitting in, and drops out of High School. Deciding that she's had enough, Dante ships her two sons off to a preparatory school.

I wasn't through the graffiti littered doors before I could hear the taunting cat calls and accusing whispers. Only a couple of months ago a rumor had circled the school that I'd given the student intern in one of my classes a blow job so he would bring up the mark of a failed test, and ever since then the student body of BHS would suck their fingers suggestively when I passed, or slipped me notes during class asking for sexual favors. To them it was all in good fun, but to the student intern and me, it was uncalled for. He'd transferred to another school in the city soon after word got around, but I was left to suffer under the taunting due to lack of transportation to the other school, though I'm sure everyone there knew about it too.

A crumpled picture of my face photo shopped onto the body of a nude, crying boy was lewdly taped to my locker, with _school whore_ scribbled with Sharpie on the side. I tore it down, as I had done with the many before it, and threw it over my shoulder, then gathered my books.

"Hello Envy!" I cringed, anticipating another round of oral abuse, until a pair of plushy, warm arms wrapped themselves around my middle and I was lifted from the floor.

"Whoa, careful there, Gluttony!" My armful of books slipped and scattered at the base of his feet. He carefully lowered me until my feet hit the floor, and then ducked down to retrieve my books. I'd never understood how one of his extremely large size could so gracefully drop down to fetch something, and so quickly get up.

"Books are back!" A smile spread across his broad face, holding the texts out for me.

"Thank you, darling." Shoving them into my backpack, I motioned for him to follow me towards our first period class, luckily taken together. The large boy lumbered on behind me, completely oblivious to the looks of disgust of our misunderstood relationship, surely believing I only spent time with him because I had no one other.

Though that could be considered a portion of the reason, as he'd done quite well protecting and defending me before, and I genuinely did consider Gluttony to be a good friend, and a great guy. Although a man of few words, his eyes seemed to hold a great understanding of all that went on around him, and he'd never let that, nor his size or constant rejection stop him from trying to make new friends. Many skittered away whenever he came near, having heard stories of how he often bit the arms of anyone who crossed him.

Even the teacher, Mr. McDougal, seemed to duck his eyes to the surface of his desk when we entered the class, even though he most often greeted the rest of the students with a smile. I'd long given up trying to make friends with most of my teachers, who had also heard the rumors about the student intern and me, and left them all to their misconceptions.

As the rest of the students slowly filed into the classroom, most chatting on cell phones or text messaging a friend, Gluttony and I found our usual seats at the back of the room and I began to prepare my binder and pens.

Mr. McDougal rose from his chair, groaning with age almost as old as the hardwood desk he stood behind, and began through the list of names, checking them off as each answered with 'here'.

"Stacey Bartlett?"

"Present!"

Check.

"Monica Calentine?"

"Here, Mr. McDougal."

Check.

"Envy Culus?"

Someone towards the front of the classroom coughed, and muttered _faggot; _the rest of the class laughed, while the teacher only peered over the edge of his paper, thick glasses catching a reflection from the window.

"Here." I said quietly, erecting a certain finger in hopes to establish an understanding with those who looked back.

"Envy hungry?" Gluttony hovered over me with a tray stacked high with food.

"Oh, no, I'm fine." I smiled, sliding down the bench a bit to make room for him, and then continued scratching a figure into the table's surface.

A group of jocks huddled around the allotted _popular_ table erupted in laughter when an opened container of milk landed bull's eye in front of me, splattering me in the foul, white substance.

Gluttony dropped his hand to his lap, hotdog hanging limply from his mouth, "Envy okay?"

"No, I'm not fucking okay!" All the years of bullying; the pranks and the beatings, I was tired of it. Unable to hold in my anger and hatred any longer, I erupted with a dramatic shriek, and lunged across the room in a seeming single step, tackling the head honcho.

With sudden and surprising strength, I landed on top of the burly football player, and without hesitation began to pound my clenched fists into his face. I hated him. I hated them all! I hated them for bulling me, for beating me, for making my life a living hell and turning me into what I am!

I didn't notice the group of people swarming around us as I continued bringing my fists down, over and over, into his face. I didn't notice the blood growing in quantity, pooling around his eyes and dripping from my fingers.

I didn't notice the two teachers dragging me off the guy, still shrieking and kicking.

I didn't even notice the handfuls of my own hair being torn out, and other members of the football cult trying to get a piece of me.

But boy, did I notice the anger and hatred that seemed to ooze from every and all of Dante's pores; all of it for me.

She gave me the beating of my life that night; there were several cuts inflicted by her nails across my face and shoulders that I'm almost sure will scar, and the bruises across my torso and thighs seem to map the portions of her life that I'd wasted.


	3. Chapter 3

**Title:** Allotted Design.

**Pairing:** None as of yet; some to come; most all involving Envy.

**Rating:** Currently standing at 18, probably, for language and violence.

**Plot:** Bullied for his obvious _difference, _Envy abandons all hope of fitting in, and drops out of High School. Deciding that she's had enough, Dante ships her two sons off to a preparatory school.

_Wrath's POV._

I nervously glanced towards the cracked clock across the room; 6:17. Envy should be home by now… usually he's home from school by 4:30, so where is he today?

I knew that I shouldn't be worried, because sometimes he takes the long way home from school, or goes to the underground coffee shop; but I have a bad feeling about today.

After distracting myself with videogames for another half an hour or so, I heard the front door open, and then crash shut. Assuming that it was Envy, angry after a bad day, I rushed towards the staircase.

"I can't believe you're my son!" I halted to a stop halfway down the stairs, listening carefully.

"Yeah, I'd like to deny our relation too." Envy started heading up stairs; I hung back in the shadows, hiding from view.

"Don't walk away from me!" Dante grabbed Envy's arm and tore him back. He stumbled down the few stairs he had conquered, landing on his back at the bottom. He struggled to get up, but before he could manage, Dante's foot pressed against his chest, forcing him to stay down. When Envy grimaced, and tried to push her foot away, I knew she was pushing the narrow heel of her shoe against his ribs.

I wanted nothing more than to run down and help him, but I didn't want to get involved; I didn't want to end up in Envy's position and punished for interrupting.

Envy kicked up with ease I'd never before witnessed from him, kicking the lower part of Dante's back and sending her stumbling away from him. She quickly caught her balance though, and lunged forward, grabbing his ankles before he could get away, dragging him across the room and out of my view.

I fought the urge to run down and help him, knowing that I'd do nothing to aid, but rather get myself involved and at the bunt of the same punishment he was now receiving.

I could hear Envy's clothing tearing; his screaming, and the blunt sounds of skin on skin. She was beating him; harder than she ever had before.

Why can't I help him? Why am I such a coward?

I slapped clenched fists over my ears, trying to block off their mixed, angry voices, and fled back to my bedroom.

"Y'know, Wrath?" I jerked in response to the sudden voice; I'd fallen asleep. A figure huddled at the foot of my bed, twisting around as if trying to get comfortable. "Mother's aren't supposed to treat their own children like this. What has the world come to? I mean, instead of communicating, and trying to fix problems, society fights. We start wars, and kill innocent people, just to get a point across. Why?" The room fell to a thick silence, and soon enough his breathing fell shallow. Whether he'd fallen asleep, or passed out, I wasn't sure, but left him to rest.

Envy slept soundly at the foot of my bed, still in the same position as the night before, when I finally awoke. For a moment I was taken back by his state of peace, despite the bruises and bits of blood caked to his face.

The cracked clock on the wall read 9:32. I didn't want to disturb him, in fear that he dwelled in a world of happiness, but I knew the later he slept the more trouble he'd be in for being tardy for school.

"Envy?" I crawled to the end of the bed, and gently shook his shoulder.

_Envy's POV. _

I almost immediately twisted into a defensive position, until the haze passed and I could clearly see the familiar dark eyes hovering above.

"I-I'm sorry for disturbing you, Envy, but we're late for school." It seemed to take a minute for his statement to sink in, until a quick glance towards the clock confirmed my suspicions. Shit!

"Ohgodohgodohgod." I leapt from the warm blankets below; the tension in my chest released, and I fell forward, body contorting as if it would help the pain swelling my ribs.

"Envy!" Wrath was suddenly on the floor, beside me. "Are you okay? Oh god, should I call for help?"

I grabbed his wrist to stop him from running for the phone. "I'm okay," I forced an assuring smile, and struggled to stand, arm wrapped protectively around my ribs. "I was just surprised."

When the two brothers parted way, Wrath snuck his brother an unsure gaze, not wanting to leave him in such a poor physical state, but not having much of a choice. Because of the grade difference, the two took classes in separate sections of the school, and so would rarely see each other throughout the day.

Envy walked as straight as he could, still holding tender ribs, the bruises on his face covered with layers of Concealer. Biting an already cracked lip, he contemplated various excuses he had already used in the months before to get out of participating in gym, and which could work again for him today.

Still fretting over an excuse for his physical state to give his teachers, Envy shifted the bag on his shoulder, and pushed open the doors to the gym. The co-ed class fought a game of dodge-ball, chosen by the teacher, but could have been categorized as popular vs. unpopular.

Gluttony scurried as fast as his small legs could carry him, trying to hide behind his smaller classmates.

Barely into the room, a ball bounced off Envy's face, toppling him over and to the floor.

"Envy!" A dramatic cry broke through the horrific screams of other students receiving balls in the face, and Gluttony lumbered through them all towards Envy. Throwing himself over Envy's small body, as a cover, he took a ball intended for Envy.

Taking on the irony of the scene unfolding around him, Envy squirmed out from under Gluttony, and began to shriek over his still body. "No, Gluttony! You didn't have to give your life for mine!" He clung to the fat man's chest. "Ooohhohoh, what has the world come to!"

The rest of the students froze mid-throw, or mid-collapse, and turned to watch the two performers.

"Gluttony, speak to me! You can't die now! I have something to tell you; I'm pregnant with your child! Speak to me!" Unaware of the attention he'd attracted, Envy pretended to pull a dagger from his pocket, and stabbed himself in the stomach, collapsing onto the body of his mock lover.

A few members of the unpopular team broke into a humored applause, while the various jocks and Barbies of the class scoffed, topped with an eye roll, and turned to ignore the two.

Raising to his feet, careful not to jostle his sore ribs, Envy gave a mock curtsey and reached down to help Gluttony to his feet, though really wasn't much help at all in lifting the large man.

"Envy! Envy bleeding!" Gluttony pointed a fat finger close to Envy's face. Sure enough, a thin stream of blood dripped from his nose, puddling on the wide semicircle fronting his Converse.

"Shit!" Envy shot up a hand as if to catch the falling blood, squeezing his nostrils together with two fingers on his other hand. Some of the Barbies lowered their cell phones long enough to shriek in terror at this human catastrophe, and huddled amongst one each other, then returned to their phone calls to tell stories of the horror they'd witnessed.

"Culus!" The gym teacher emerged from his small office at the far end of the gym, "Why were you late? _Oh God!_ Let's get you to the nurse." He jogged over to the bleeding boy, and jerked him in the direction of the attached nurse's office. "All over my fuckin' floor."

"At least this'll get me out of gym class." Envy thought to himself, following his teacher's lead into the nurse's office. The small woman jumped from her desk, surely more excited to have something to do than worried about the boy's wellbeing.

"I'll take care of him from now on." She nudged the gym teacher out, closing the door behind him.

"So, take a ball in the face?" She stepped close and brushed the stained hands from his face. She smelt of soap, and other sterile things.

"Yeah." Envy tilted back his head, choking on the blood framing the back of his throat.

"Well, we can take care of that!" She passed behind him and fetched a cold cloth from a sink at the back. "Here, hold this over your nose, and squeeze your nostrils. But don't tilt your head back; you may end up gagging, and if you swallow too much blood you could vomit, or get diarrhea!" She smiled, crossing her hands over her stomach, and watched him carefully.

He smiled back with a mouthful of bloody teeth, backing up until he fell into a seat against the wall.

"As long as it stops within 15 minutes, we're good. If it lasts up to 20 minutes, I'll have to take you to an actual doctor."

"Oh, I'm sure it'll be quite okay; nosebleeds never last too long for me." Except for when someone punches me.

Within a few minutes, as predicted, the bleeding stopped. Envy took the liberty of rinsing the blood from the cloth, and washed off any remaining caked to his face or fingers.

"Quite a mess you had there!" The nurse hovered close behind him, as if fearing he may faint from the small amount of blood he had lost. Envy nodded, avoiding her eyes in the reflection of the mirror placed above the sink.

"Yeah, I guess so." He shrugged, disposing of the cloth in a near by garbage bin near by, and turned to leave.

"Mr. Culus?" The nurse gently tugged his arm, "Could I ask you a personal question?"

Envy looked around nervously, unsure as to what she may question. "Okay."

"How did you get the bruises on your face?"

Envy swallowed nervously, not wanting word to get out of how he was abused by his mother, fearing the punishment such news would earn him from Dante.

"I was play fighting with my brother, and it got a little out of control."

The nurse nodded, but didn't seem to believe him, and pressed a palm lightly to his chest. When Envy grimaced, and gave a sharp intake of breath, she nodded again.

"Please lift your shirt." Envy opened his mouth to protest, but she cut him off with a repeat of her request. Envy nodded solemnly, carefully gathering the bottom of his shirt and lifted, careful not to brush the tender skin.

Broken blood vessels tattooed his chest, darker patches edging his ribs.

"Oh, gracious." The woman disappeared behind him, then reached around his small waist and carefully pressed his ribs. After a few moments, she spoke; "Nothing seems to be broken, but by the looks of things something could have easily been. Surely your brother didn't cause all of this."

Envy jerked his shirt down, ashamed of the sight he'd bared for her. "I-I have to go." He quickly pivoted around the nurse, grabbed his bag, and bolted from the room.

"Shit! Shitshitshit!" Envy swore, choking back a mouthful of coffee.

"Envy?"

"I can't believe I showed her. Damnit!" Envy tilted back for another chug, eager for the alcohol mixed caffeine to cloud his mind. "If she reports this, or even calls home… shit! Dante'll have my head!"

He swallowed the remainder of his drink and tossed the crumpled cup under the table. "What am I going to do?" He tore at handfuls of his hand, then dropped his head less than gracefully, face first onto the table surface.

Gluttony slowly chewed a mouthful of cafeteria meatloaf, watching the distraught boy with interest.

"Envy be okay." He rested a heavy hand on the smaller, and pulled the long fingers from tangles of hair. "Don't go home."

Envy lifted his face, gazing thoughtfully at Gluttony. "That could work… but if I don't go home, she may take it out on Wrath. I can't let that happen to him… Damnit! Why do I always have to cause trouble for this family?"

The elder teacher assigned to watch over Envy while out of class, after his violent outburst, tapped his shoulder, and gave him a side glance suggesting he watch his language. Envy snarled, launching himself down the bench and away from the poking finger.

"All this crap is only supposed to happen to people in the movies." He gave in with a dramatic sigh, resting his chin on the table.

"Envy be okay."

TBC…

A/N - Thanks to everyone who reviewed the last two chapters; and thanks for the compliments towards the title! I figured it was appropriate, suggesting that being gay isn't something you chose to be, but rather something you are given at birth. This is Envy's allotted design.

Yes, he is gay; it's not just something made up by fellow students.


	4. Chapter 4

**Title:** Allotted Design.

**Pairing: **OMC and Envy.

**Rating:** Currently standing at 18, probably, for language, violence and rape.

**Plot:** Bullied for his obvious _difference, _Envy abandons all hope of fitting in, and drops out of High School. Deciding that she's had enough, Dante ships her two sons off to a preparatory school.

**WARNING:**

**This chapter contains forced sexual content between two males; if you can't take it, do not continue. **

After stealing a five dollar bill from a woman in the local convenience store, Envy switched the bill to rolls of quarters in the same store, and then gathered the filth encrusted clothing littering his bedroom floor. Packing it all into his backpack, second checking to make sure he had the quarters, he began the familiar route to his usual Laundromat.

It had been years since the washer and dryer in his own house actually worked; more often than not the washer wouldn't spurt out any water, and even if it did, the dryer would get hot enough to actually singe the clothing.

The man perched behind a desk near the door nodded in Envy's direction, lazily sucking back on a cigar.

"Hey, Tony." Envy returned the friendly nod of acknowledgment, heading to the washer and dryer set towards the back that he most commonly used.

"I was beginnin' to wonder whether you'd be comin' back to do more clothes. Thought you found somewhere else ta go." Tony slurred with his heavy accent.

Envy chuckled; he often had said conversation with Tony, always leading to the conclusion that Tony would let him wash his clothing for free in return for sexual favors. Envy always cheekily declined, but promised him that he'd never go elsewhere to do laundry, and really never did.

"I would never do that." Envy responded, carefully sorting his darks from lights, and quickly added; "So how's business been?" to change the subject.

"Oh, y'know." Envy nodded; Tony acknowledged that he wouldn't get lucky; conversation terminated.

"Ooh, well, I think that sounds like a great idea." Envy lazily rolled his gum in a string around the tip of his finger, leaning heavily across the plastic tiled candy bar at the back of the Laundromat.

"I knew you would." Tony chuckled, smirking seductively. Envy giggled, mind clouded with the foul tasting liquor Tony had snuck him from his own secret stash under the candy bar. While sober, Envy would never have agreed to perform sexual favors for the Laundromat owner in return for free liquor every visit, but Tony certainly knew how to twist the teenager around his hairy fingers when unable to make coherent decisions.

"Hit me." Envy nudged his bottomless shot glass across the bar, watching the brown liquid slosh around the bottom and sides, speckling a few drops across the tile.

Envy reached over a thin finger, and smudged it across the spilt liquor. Gazing slowly, under thick eyelashes, towards Tony, he slowly lapped the bitter liquid from his finger.

"Fuck, you're so beautiful."

"No, I'm so drunk!" Envy burst into a fit of uncontrollable giggles, hopping down from his swivel stool and skipped back to his washer. "They're done! I didn't even hear the beep!" He tore open the washer, and tossed the clothes into a nearby dryer, dropping several items during the transfer.

While bending down to pick up the scattered socks and shirts, a strong hand grabbed a hold of his buttocks and squeezed, massaging the firm muscles.

"Oh, hey baby."

Envy let out a squeak of surprise, whipping into a standing position, hair flying wildly to it's own accord and into his eye. Blinded in one eye, Envy shrieked and shot a hand up to protect his wound. Peering through his wild hair, Envy's mouth dropped open in surprise; Greed!

"What tha fuck?" Greed stumbled back against a rumbling machine, overwhelmed by complete surprise at the sight of his son.

"Greed!" Envy displayed a similar moment of shock, staggering backwards and tripping over his bag, landing on the floor.

"Shit. I thought---fuck! I thought you were a woman." Greed ran a clammy hand down over his face, sighing dramatically.

Overtaken again by the intoxicating beverage swimming through his veins, Envy burst into a fit of laughter; "I knew I was that hot!" he staggered to his feet.

Tony jumped into the scene, planting himself firmly between Greed and Envy, determined to protect his catch against this possible hunter. "What's going on? Who are you?" He whipped around to face Greed. "Don't you be going anywhere near my catch!"

Greed laughed, and then realized the man was serious. "What tha hell? Your _catch?_ You pervert! This is my son."

Tony dropped his raised fists, turning his gaze to Envy, who averted his own, nodding.

"Yep. Tony, Greed. Greed, Tony." He motioned his hand between the two, and then returned to adding his fallen clothes to the dryer, sobered up at the acknowledgement of the possible seriousness of this situation.

"Envy! Don't tell me you were actually going to do something with this—this dirtball!" Tony again raised his fists defensively, lunging towards Greed, this time more interested in protecting his status as a good business owner.

"Don't you be sayin' things like that around here!" Calloused fingers wrapped firmly around Greed's suction tattooed neck, pressure steadily added to this grasp.

"Tony!" Envy jumped into the scene, attaching himself to the man's back, tugging roughly large handfuls of his greasy, black hair.

Flung from the burly man's back, Envy crash landed against a rumbling washer machine, wind knocked abruptly from his lungs.

Gasping for breath, Envy struggled to stand; not completely sure which side he stood for but determined to stop the two men from fighting, until Tony dropped limply by his feet.

"Greed—" A groan escaped the fallen man's lips, then he fell still and silent. "What did you do to him?"

"Don't worry; I only knocked him unconscious."

"You didn't have to do that! I was making quite fine handling To—"

"Fuckin' right you were! You were about to drop your pants and bend over the bar for him!"

Envy clenched his fists; arms tense against his sides. "Fuck you! I wouldn't do that!"

"Oh, c'mon Envy, it's not like I haven't heard the stories about you and student interns around school! I may be your father, but that doesn't leave me oblivious to everything that happens outside the house."

"Hey, I didn't do anything with any student intern; it was all lies!" Envy flailed an arm around to emphasize his point. "Besides, you're always too busy fucking the whores you meet at clubs and on street corners to know shit!"

"Shut up!" Greed slung, and then backhanded Envy with such ease; snapping the head sideways with a sharp slapping noise.

Envy whimpered, hair casting over his flushed cheek, creating a protective barrier. Greed raised a hand, reaching to squeeze his son's shoulder comfortingly, but the boy twisted from his reach and solemnly returned to watching his load of clothes.

"Envy; I'm sorry. I couldn't help myself—I was so angry by what you were saying, and the fact that you're probably right."

"Really, Greed; just go." Envy waved him off.

Hours later, as dusk fell, Envy could still be found within the fly infested Laundromat. His clothes lay long abandoned, shoved recklessly into his bag, beside the bar where he sat, drowning his sorrows in the remaining alcohol he'd discovered under the boxes of candy and other childhood joys. Tony had woken up just moments prior, but finding Envy still hanging around, found himself unable to be angry and settled down to enjoy a nice, drunken session with an angsty teenager.

Casually making the transfer between belting out his sorrows, to mumbling them face first into the counter, Envy coughed and sputtered with each additional mouthful of alcohol.

"Idon't…no,can'ttakeanymore." He slurred with a heavy tongue, fighting back the wicked tasting bile trying to climb its way up the back of his throat. "Ohjesus." He bent over and vomited across the floor, barely missing his bag of freshly cleaned clothing.

Hung over, and bluntly far moodier than usual, Envy snarled in the direction of anyone who dared cross his path through the hallways. Even Gluttony trudged sadly behind him, not daring to voice his concerns, despite how obviously his facial expression portrayed this feeling.

After a full morning of wallowing in his own self-pity, Envy collapsed limply on the familiar surface of his everyday table in a far back corner of the cafeteria. Only minutes later Gluttony joined him, usually first in line to get his pick of the food, and more often than not clearing out the selection.

"Envy feeling better?" He wasted no time in chowing down on his plateful of questionable looking food.

Earning no more than a grunt in response, he turned his full attention to the food before him, and left Envy to mope.

"Uuugh." Oh, a sign of life. Envy rolled his head to the side, and gazed up at Gluttony. "I need to find a new Laundromat."

Despite his solemn vow to find a new Laundromat, Envy broke his promise just a day later and found himself in the same, smelly building early before school. He'd once believed that Tony slept with the washer machines, always visible through the tall glass windows, smoking a cigar; night or day.

"Hey, Tony." Envy whisked past the man, ignoring the face full of the bitter, familiar smoke, and planted himself immediately in front of the candy bar.

"Hit me." He reached over and under the counter for his usual glass, still sticky from his previous escapades. The vomit had been cleaned up, but still could be smelt, mixing foully with the scent of detergent and cotton candy.

"I don't know if I should do that." Tony stood hesitantly on Envy's side of the bar, not yet taking the step behind it to serve his customer.

"Oh, c'mon Tony! I need this; with all the shit I take from people at school, I need this to help me through the day." He tapped the small glass on the counter, eyeing between Tony and the bar.

Tony gave in with an exasperated sigh, but grinned cheekily with the knowledge that Envy came to him for help getting through the day, despite that the method he provided may not be considered the best to offer a teenager.

Nearly a pint to himself later, Envy sat hunched over himself, forehead resting on the cool tile. Gazing blankly at the floor below, he coolly inhaled a puff of airborne cancer from a cigarette; his fourth in an hour.

"God, Tony; what would I do without you?" He moaned, reaching up for his final glassful, and swallowed back. Nearly toppling off his stool, he rose carefully to his feet, steadying himself with a hand firmly planted on the counter. "Shit. I have to get to school." He stubbed out his cigarette in a near by tray set out by Tony, and reached for his bag.

"Thanks, babe." He blew a kiss towards the equally intoxicated man resting blankly on the counter, and went on his way.

The fresh aired walk to school sobered him enough to appear capable to his teachers, but left him with a happy high through first period and into the second.

Gym class would have normally left him in an utter state of depression; knowing of the looks and remarks the other, more athletic and physically toned male students gave him in the change room, but on this day he could care less.

Whisking confidently from the stalls to his provided gym locker, he swung his shirt over a bare shoulder, grinning cheekily to the others around him. One at the far end of the locker aisle decided Envy didn't deserve such confidence, and stuck a foot out to trip the boy. He stumbled, but caught himself before he could crash to the floor, and turned back to the boy;

"Well, I knew you liked having me on my knees before you, but baby, not in public." He licked his lips suggestively, leaning close to his assailant. The boy before him froze, having not expected such a reaction from the normally timid boy, but when encouraged by the others around him, he shoved Envy forcefully back against another row of lockers.

Envy tossed his head back and cackled, "Oh, I knew you liked it rough!" He grabbed the firm shoulders of the boy before him, and ground their hips seductively.

The boy cursed in disgust, and threw the frail boy, still laughing, away from him, then ran for the gym.

As Envy rose, he winked to the small crowd of jocks who surrounded him, and pulled the assigned tee-shirt over his head. "See yah in the gym, boys."

Still happily high as the class neared to an end, he stripped with ease he'd never before felt in front of the others surrounding him, and climbed into the open showers. First wetting down his long, black hair, he whisked it over his shoulder and proceeded to lather himself up. Various others, determined to be clean and proper smelling for their girlfriends, ignored the uncomfortable feeling of having a gay man in their midst, and quickly lathered up and washed themselves down.

Taking his sweet time, Envy took no notice as the others in the class filed from the locker room, and the bell for third period rang sharply. Eyes closed, he wallowed in the feelings of being able to take such a long shower with hot water not abruptly turning cold with bitter parents turning on various other taps in the house, not noticing the burly figure joining him in the otherwise empty showers.

"You shouldn't have fuckin' done that." The gruff voice from behind started Envy, but when he turned around and saw only the boy before, he cackled.

"Shouldn't have done what, darling?" He turned his back again, rinsing soap suds from his slick hair.

"You know what I'm talking about." The boy shoved Envy forward, into the tiled shower wall. "Trying to fuck up my reputation with the guys?"

Envy sobered up slightly, turning back to his assailant, struck in a defensive position. "Hey, I was just jokin' around; besides, you deserved it for all the shit you give me every day." He retorted, attempting to pivot past the wide figure blocking his way.

A strong hand grabbed his shoulder, and tore him back against the wall, "Don't you walk away from me!" The firm body of the boy pressed against his own. "Is that what you like? You fuckin' faggot!"

Envy trembled, hit with the realization of what was happening. "Get away from me!" He swung wildly.

The boy grabbed his wrists and helped him firmly against the tiled wall, rubbing their bodies close. "Shut up, faggot. You know you like it."

"You're the one coming on to me; you faggot!" Envy spat in the boys face, ignoring the undeniable pleasure pooling near his groin.

The boy pulled away, and looked down triumphantly at Envy's responding member, chuckling at the boy's inability to stop what was happening.

Envy squeezed his eyes shut, resting his head back against the cool wall, "No, get away from me!" He tried to hunch over and hide himself from the boy's sight, but failed miserably.

"What are you complaining about? I bet you do this all the fuckin' time with that greasy faggot at the Laundromat." The boy continued, digging his nails into the pale skin bordering protruding bones on Envy's shoulder, forcing him down to his knees.

Envy whimpered, salty tears mixing with the shower's flow of water down his face. "Oh god, no." He cried, reaching up to push the boy away, but his wrists were slammed again to the tiles above his head. Holding them firmly with one large hand, the boy grabbed a hold of Envy's thin jaw with the other, forcing him to open to the hardening member close to his face.

"No!" Envy tried to fight, but had no chance against the stronger boy over him, even when he gave into the utter bliss of his cock within the hot confines of Envy's mouth.

Envy gagged, hot tears streaming wildly now, mixing with the salty sickness around his lips.

The boy above him moaned, relentlessly guiding himself in and out of the tortured boy before him, pumping faster.

"Hey, who's in here?" A gruff voice called from the blocked off portion of the locker room. The boy above Envy froze, and abruptly jerked himself from the boy, and bolted for the exit.

Uncaring of the teacher that would soon be in the shower area, staring with more curiosity than concern, Envy collapsed amongst the filth on the shower floor, curled into a feeble position.

TBC…


	5. Chapter 5

**Title:** Allotted Design.

**Pairing: **None in this chapter.

**Rating:** Perhaps… PG-14.

**Plot:** Bullied for his obvious _difference, _Envy abandons all hope of fitting in, and drops out of High School. Deciding that she's had enough, Dante ships her two sons off to a preparatory school.

When he finally awoke, Envy found himself dried and wrapped in a warm house coat. For a brief moment, blinking his eyes to adjust to the luminous lights above, he fought to recognize his surroundings. It wasn't until he heard a familiar voice, the school nurse, that he recognized the sick, urine colored walls, and the pale green curtains blocking him from the rest of the room.

The blankets on the bed he lay in were rough and only seemed to irritate his skin beyond its already tortured state. He coughed and sputtered, unable to scratch the musky taste of man from his sore tongue. He leapt from the bed, and flung himself against the sink, choking back as many mouthfuls of the cold water as he could take, then peered sadly at his reflection. Dark bags had developed around his eyes, and his hair remained tousled; flying wildly in all directions.

He grimaced, fighting back a gurgled moan as he collapsed to the cold floor, crashing back against the base of the sink. The voices from outside the curtain barrier slowed to a halt, and the familiar shadow of the small, conservatively dressed woman peered over him.

"Envy! You're awake; are you okay?" She dropped to her knees in front of him and pressed a cool palm against his broad forehead, checking for possible temperature.

He flung himself from her reach, and crawling far across the room, climbed viciously back onto the bed and hid under the covers. He couldn't explain to himself why he felt so scared of her, or her touch, but knew that he mustn't get too close; no, not yet.

"Envy?" The nurse hovered over the bed, unsure whether to pull the blanket back or not. "Envy, would you like me to go get Gluttony?"

The blanket clad blob, vaguely shaped like a human, gave a shake that was interpreted as a nod and the nurse ran from the room.

Quick to the side of his dear friend, Gluttony was soon hovering over the bed.

"Envy?" He gently shook the blankets.

Envy remained still for a moment, as though fearing a trick, and then slowly lowered the blanket from over his face. At the confirmed sight of his friend, he leapt from the bed and threw himself into the arms of Gluttony.

"Envy okay?" The fat man clung tightly to the thin frame pressed close, still unsure as to what may have happened, having not been in gym class due to a guidance appointment.

"Oh, Gluttony," Envy cried, body wracking with the first few sobs, "I shouldn't have let it happen. I can't believe I let it happen!" He held tighter, arms swung as far around the man's body as he could reach.

The nurse, still hovering near the door, smiled with the knowledge that Gluttony would be able to help, and quietly left the two alone.

Once he'd settled down, and tears were dried, Envy sat side by side with Gluttony on the edge of the hard mattress. Envy clung tightly to his hand, stroking the pad of his thumb across the plush knuckles, letting out the final sighs of tamed sobs.

"Oh, Gluttony, it was so bad." He began slowly, as if unsure to continue his account of the events. "I went to the Laundromat this morning, and Tony gave me alcohol; I came to school drunk, and because of that I was more confident than normal, so I ended up harassing one of the guys from our gym class." Once he'd started, he didn't stop. "He tripped me, and I retorted with some kind of suggestive remark about being on my knees in front of him, and that set him off. He confronted me in the showers after everyone had left, a—and he made me—he forced me down to my knees, and forced my mouth open, and t—then..." He abruptly broke down again, burying his face into the comforting confines of his hands. Gluttony rubbed Envy's back with small, soothing circles. "

"He made me perform… I had to give him oral sex. Oh, Gluttony, it was horrible! I mean, I've joked about all these things before, but it was so much different being forced too. He just kept… shoving himself in, and I was gagging; but he didn't stop until someone came into the locker room. And then I woke up here." He sighed, slouching heavily against Gluttony's large frame, seeming to feel better after getting it all out.

Gluttony didn't speak, but continued to hold the small boy, knowing that being close and assuring would help him more than anything he could say.

After giving the principle and various other authorities within the school an appropriate lie about what had happened, Envy was guided home by his faithful friend, who stuck carefully close.

They departed, and Envy hastily darted up the stairs to his bedroom, hoping to avoid having to speak to anyone. For once he was successful.

He'd been asleep, happily dwelling in an alternate reality, for several hours when awoken by a strange crackling noise. For a moment he tried to ignore it, believing the source to be someone else within the house, but when it continued, more persistent and erratic than before, he rose to investigate.

Following the sounds he was lead to the window, and could see Gluttony outside the window, on the lawn, preparing to throw more pebbles at the glass until he saw he had roused the boy inside. He beckoned with a heavy arm for Envy to join him in the night; Envy primarily refused, shaking his head in motions he knew would be evident to the man below, but when he wouldn't give up, Envy gave in.

Carefully darting through the hallway and down the stairs, sticking to the shadows, he snuck through the back door and out onto the lawn. The dew was cold on his feet, and he couldn't see Gluttony. Ready to head inside, he turned back to the door, only to see Gluttony sitting on the cement perch before it.

"There you are!" Envy skittered over and sat next to him, latching on to his arm to soak up his body heat. "Oh, you're all wet." He stroked a finger across a moist patch on the hairless arm, and then rubbed the sticky substance between his fingers.

"What is this?" Envy raised his gaze to Gluttony, but the man only stared blankly at the ground.

"Gluttony… got him."

"Got who? Did something happen?"

"Gluttony got the boy." Envy opened his mouth to question further, but Gluttony beat him to the chase. "The boy who hurt Envy."

"W—what did you do to him?" Almost afraid to ask, Envy clung tighter to the arm in his grasp.

"Gluttony got him. I hate him for hurting Envy. Gluttony got him… he won't hurt Envy again." The tone of voice Gluttony spoke in was new, and unrecognizable to Envy listening. Rather than the typical chipper, happy voice Gluttony mumbled in, this one was low, and forceful.

"Oh god Gluttony, what did you do to him? Did you hurt him?"

"Gluttony got him. Got him good. He won't hurt Envy again." And with that the fat man stood, and steadily walked across the lawn and disappeared into the woods behind, leaving a bewildered boy behind.

Knowing that Gluttony never lied, Envy leapt to his feet and ran back into the house, turning on the TV balanced on a small table. The channels all said the same thing.

"Only someone of great strength—"

"A tragic shock to this small town—"

"Police are searching now—"

"Manhunt—"

"Police only know one thing for sure; the boy was brutally murdered in a fashion this quiet town has never before soon."


	6. Chapter 6

**Title:** Allotted Design.

**Pairing: **None in this chapter.

**Rating:** Perhaps… PG-16, for language.

Once word got around to the students of local high school that a member of their own had been murdered, several close friends of the victim came forward and informed authorities of the conflicts between him and Envy. Of course, before Envy could be taken in for questioning, they questioned the boys who had given this new information, and eventually it came out that the boy had frequently beaten Envy over the years, and had even planned to rape him that day. Although none knew whether he actually had or not, as the boy had fled the school immediately after the deed was done.

Envy had lugged the TV upstairs to his bedroom so that he could watch the news without the prying eyes of his family when he happened to land on a live report coming from his front lawn.

"I'm Linda Johnson, and I come to you now, live, from the home of the leading suspect in the gruesome murder that happened just hours ago."

The camera panned back to show a wider view of the house, and several cop cars pulling onto the lawn.

Turning off the TV, sure enough Envy could hear the sirens and yelling from the front of the house, despite that he'd originally thought what he saw on the screen to be an illusion of his mind.

"Shit!" He jumped to his feet, and began to run to the door, but then realized that should he go that way, he'd meet officers on the way down. So he began to run towards the window, but then he realized he couldn't fit through the portion of the window that opened to the outside.

"Shit!" He grabbed a hold of the TV, and with all his might threw it through the picture window, shattering the glass to the lawn below. Luckily, his bedroom faced the back long, which as of yet was empty of reporters and various members of authority.

With barely a second glance around his room, he leapt through the window, landing gracefully amongst the shards of glass, and ran for the woods.

Wrath burst from his room and slid down the banister, landing with a crash against the front door. Readjusting himself, he opened the door with a broad smile, until he faced the handful of Officers looming over him, blocking the sight of a dozen more standing on the lawn and sitting in their parked cars.

"Sweet Jesus cunt!" Wrath immediately swung to close the door, but one of the leading Officers shot his foot through the doorway, blocking Wrath's attempt.

"I'm sorry, young man, but we're going to need to come in." He twisted his foot to widen the opening. Wrath stumbled backwards, still in surprise, allowing the door to swing open.

"Does Mr. Envy Culus live here?" The Officers flipped his badge, not bothering to check or correct his mispronunciation of the name.

"Y—yeah, he does." Wrath nodded, sneaking a peak over his shoulder in hopes to spot his brother on the stairs. Instead he was hit with the sound of a window breaking; the Officers immediately pushed their way past and stomped upstairs with their heavy boots, expertly following the sound of the noise.

"He's gone!" The first Officer in the room called to the rest, running over to the window in time to catch a glimpse of Envy disappearing into the woods behind the house.

"He's entered the woods."

"Those woods spread for acres; there are too many places for him to hide, sir."

"Yes, let's just wait for him to make an appearance, and go after him then! He can't stay hidden in the woods for too long!"  
Now note the obvious laziness of the local Officers.

"So now you're trying to tell me that my son is a suspect in a murder case?" Dante impatiently tapped her overgrown fingernails across the kitchen table.

Wrath sat quietly at the bottom of the steps nearby, listening carefully to the news the Officers read off from their notepads.

"Well, Mrs. Culus, from what we've gathered it seems Envy was having a fair bit of trouble with other students at school, particularly some boys in his gym class. We've been told that one particular boy, the boy who was murdered, was particularly mean to your son, and had even planned to rape him. We haven't yet confirmed whether he actually did, or not, although we doubt he did. Young males have the habit of coming up with such plans, but never fulfilling them."

"Are you trying to tell me that my son was _raped_?"

"Well, as I said, we're not qui—"

"My son does not go to a renowned public school to be _raped!"_ She abruptly stood from her seat, knocking it back against the floor. "I can't believe this has happened! What were the damned teachers doing while this happened?" She grabbed the notepad full of information on the murder case from an Officer at the table, and began to angrily tear the pages from the book into shreds.

"My son wouldn't murder anyone! He's the one that was raped; you should be looking into _that!" _She threw the pieces of paper into the Officer's face. "Leave, _now." _

One of the Officers's opened his mouth to protest, but another elbowed him, and they both left, one solemnly eying Wrath as he passed.

"Momma?" Wrath timidly stepped down from the stairs. Dante kept her back turned. "You hurt Envy all the time, why do you care so much that he's bullied at school, and maybe was even raped?"

"Wrath…" The woman began slowly, turning to face him. "Get the fuck out of my face; right _now!"_ She flung a plate from the table, the nearest object in her reach, in his direction. He ducked aside and ran for the stairs as the plate shattered against the wall.

Envy huddled under the low hanging branches of a fallen tree, shivering in the cold of the night. He was unsure as to how long he'd been hiding in the woods, as far from the house as he could walk, but the sun had set long ago. Though he was sure the police no longer searched for him, but waited for the light of day, he didn't dare make way back to the house in fear they'd left surveillance to catch him. He hadn't believed they'd actually come after him, but from what he'd gathered on the News before he fled, some students had told the police of his conflicts with the boy who'd been murdered, and that was motive enough.

"Where do I go now?" He questioned himself, resting his chin on his knees and slowly rocking back and forth. "Shitshitshit. I shouldn't have ran; I have nothing to hide! But I can't let them get Gluttony either… Ohgodohgodohgod. I can't go back now. But I have nowhere else to go!"

Envy had passed out from exhaustion by time Wrath found him early the following morning. The sun was just beginning to rise, and a cool layer of dew coated the ground, soaking his pants up to the knees. Dropping to his knees beside his brother, he carefully rolled him onto his back, almost afraid to find him dead, but calmed at the gentle rise and fall of his chest.

"Envy…" He shook him carefully, "You need to wake up now; they'll be coming soon." He shook harder.

Envy woke with a start, sitting up in a sudden motion, arms twisted into a defensive position.

"Oh God, Wrath, you scared me!" He held a hand over his chest to emphasize his point. "Oi, it's so cold out." He rubbed his hands over the thin material covering his arms, attempting to better circulate the blood.

"Envy, you need to get out of town. The police are really bent on the thought that you did it, because they've got no other leads."

"Wrath, I've got nowhere to go!" Envy buried his face in the crook of his elbow, groaning in desperation. "Have you heard from Gluttony?"

"No, why?"

"So they haven't gotten a hold of him…"

"Does that mean he did it?" Wrath shifted into a better position, leaning closer to Envy.

"He did. He came to the house last night… he had blood on his arms. He told me that he'd taken care of the boy who hurt me."

"So he really did rape you?"

Envy fell silent, taken back by his brother's question. "Yeah… yeah, he did."

"Why didn't you tell someone?"

"Well," Envy thought for a minute. "If you think about it, there's no way they'd believe me over him. There are already rumors about me and student interns, and being sexual, so if he told them that he came on to me, and his friends decided they'd _witnessed_ it all, I'd be done for."

Wrath hated to admit it, but he knew his brother was right; he wouldn't have had a chance.

"So what are you going to do now? Can't you go forward and tell them that it was really Gluttony?"

"I can't nark my best friend out!"

"But he's letting you take the blame…" Wrath pointed out, though careful not to upset his brother, knowing the temper he can have.

"Well… he did it for me in the first place, it's the least I can do." Envy ended with a determined nod, and Wrath knew he could no longer say anything to change his brother's mind.

"Then you need to leave town."

"I still have nowhe—"

"Mother is sending me away." Wrath paused, and then continued before Envy could speak. "She said it's best for me… she doesn't want me under the influence of you any longer. She's already contacted the school, and they've agreed to take me as soon as possible due to the current situation around here. So I'm to go tomorrow."

"What kind of school is it?"

Wrath was almost surprised by how calmly Envy took the news. "Well, it's a preparatory school. It sounds like a nice place, I was reading about it on a computer at the library. I'll have to share a dorm, though… Well, actually, you will."

"What? What are you saying…?"

"Envy, I want you to go instead of me. We've nearly of the same age, and we look similar, so no one will know the difference! I mean, no one there has seen me; they've only gotten my basic appearance details, just to know who to look out for at the train station. But... over the past couple of months I've been skipping school. I haven't been going to any of my classes, instead I've been working a job at one of the gaming stores downtown. They've offered to pay for me to go to a 3 month learning convention down in the states."

"Wrath…"

"No, Envy, listen to me. I really want to go to this; if I do well I could even be offered a job! I mean, I could end up working for a real company, testing games or something. And I think its best if I went in that direction, and you went in the one planned for me. You go to the school until things have settled down here."

"Wrath… I hate to take this from you, but I think it really could be the best thing right about now."

Wrath smiled, and seemed to visibly calm. "Thank god you've agreed; I was afraid I'd have to knock you unconscious and then dump you on the bus to the train station!" He timidly met Envy's eyes, still worried of how Envy may take this suggestion, despite how he'd already agreed.

"I don't know what I'd do without you, Wrath." Envy latched himself to Wrath's body, and hugged him close. "You're one of the only people I can trust, and feel I'm trusted by. Thank you."

Wrath melted in his brother's arms, hugging him tightly, "I hate to be so far from you, but I guess that it's best we go the ways we're going. And it's not like we'll never see each other before." He smiled sadly, fighting back an oncoming wave of tears.

**A/N:** Well, here's another chapter! And we're getting closer and closer to the excitement that is sure to come when –coughcough-Ed-coughcough- and Envy have to share a dorm room. Anyone but me excited?

Also, thanks for the reviews guys, I really appreciate them all. Makes writing these chapters so much better knowing that people are actually reading them.

Now, if only I had such motivation writing the novella for one of my courses. --'' Only 11,000 words to go!

On a lighter note I'm going to Silent Hill tomorrow; opening night! I'm so very excited and so felt the need to share.

Can anyone give me some tips on how to fix the layout of my stories on here? I hate all the unnecessary spaces between paragraphs, and such, and how it deletes the extra spaces I've created between paragraphs that are technically two different scenes. I've tried editing after uploading it into my Documents section on here , and adding the three stars to signify a change of scene, but they always disappear when I save the changes...


	7. Chapter 7

**Title:** Allotted Design.

**Pairing: **None in this chapter.

**Rating:** Perhaps… PG. Maybe PG-14.

**AN: **I apologize for the various misuse of words in the previous chapter. I was in a rush to get it online before I had to get off the computer, and didn't take the time to reread it. Hopefully you all understood what I was trying to say. / Also, I realize that in the plot stated at the beginning of the first few chapters I mentioned that both brothers would be shipped to the prep school. Sorry for the change, if it caused any confusion, things just ended up going different than I'd originally planned.

The following night Wrath guided Envy to a fort he'd built in the woods just a few months ago.

"Normally I'd accuse you of being far too old to build a fort, but boy am I glad to see it now. Wasn't too comfortable sleeping on the ground last night."

"It's not much, but it'll keep you dry and out of the wind." Wrath nodded, rocking his hips from side to side. "I can also try an' steal you some blankets from the house… there hasn't been any police around since last night."

"So Dante knows?"

"Yeah," Wrath nodded, thinking back to her angry outburst. "She tore up one of the guys' notebooks, and then kicked them out."

Envy smiled, almost sadly with the knowledge that the only time Dante played a motherly protective role was at a time like this.

"D'you think I could sneak back into the house to gather a few of my things?"

Wrath hid his surprise of Envy's uncharacteristically shy attitude.

"I'm sure we could get you in and out without being noticed." They shared a smile.

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Slowly skimming the edge of the lawn, the brothers surveyed the scene before them. The house stood dark and silent; no sign of life, no shadows lurking behind closed curtains.

"Okay, c'mon." Wrath skittered across the lawn, brother following close behind, and pressed his body against the cool wood of the house. They both held their breath, listening closely for any sounds of people within.

"Okay, I think it's safe." The two snuck in through the back door and made way to Envy's room, hastily shoving a few changes of clothes into a backpack.

"Wait," Envy dove to the floor and dug through the mess swelling from his closet. "I need my school bag." Buried far below scattered papers of angsty lyrics and half finished drawings, he found his backpack, insides scattered in small piles around the floor. Shoving it all back in, not bothering to organize it all into proper pockets, he crawled frantically around the room gathering various other items that may prove useful later on.

Slinging a bag over each shoulder, and grabbed his drool stained pillow, he nodded with a triumphant nod and careful surveying glance around the room for any forgotten items.

"Okay Wrath, I think I've got anything I may need."

Wrath bundled a comforter into a ball, and held it formally under his arm.

"Wait…" Envy held out a hand to silence any noise Wrath may make, and listened to the heavy silence of the house. "We have to get out." He tugged his brother from the room and galloped down the stairs.

"Envy!" The front door swung open and Dante loomed over the two boys as the skidded to a halt. "What are you doing in this house?"

Greed's face popped into view over Dante's shoulder. "What are you doing _leaving_ the house? There are cops all over the town looking for you!"

"We were just leaving." Envy spun around to head for the back door, but a familiar, boney hand snatched a handful of his shirt and tore him backwards. Stumbling, Envy fell back into a sitting position on the floor. He whimpered, knowing too well what was surely to come next. But it didn't; no accusing slaps or punishing kicks. Hesitantly he looked over his shoulder to the two only barely earning the title of parents.

Greed stood still, solemnly watching Envy from his position behind Dante, who stood, almost alienated from her typical self, with closed eyes.

"I don't know what to do with you anymore." She spoke softly. "I've tried punishment, affectionate force, and ignorance; nothing gets through to you. I'm tired of it, and I think it _is_ time for you to leave."

"Dante—"

"No, Greed." She raised a hand to silence his protests. "Envy, my boy, please leave and never come back. I don't care where you go or what you do, just go. Here," She dug through the pocket of her overcoat, and held a small handful of bills out to him. "There should be a little over a hundred dollars there. If nothing else, it'll help you get started somewhere new." As soon as he took the gift, she brushed past without another word and disappeared elsewhere in the house.

"Greed?"

"Envy, she's right. It'll be best for you to get away from this house." He held out a friendly hand. Envy hesitated, carefully eyeing the hand, questioning Greed's purpose. As Greed grew impatient, he reached down and pulled Envy roughly to his feet.

"Here. A little more for the road." He slapped a bill into Envy's hand and disappeared just as Dante had.

Envy watched him go, and then looked to his palm; there sat another crumpled hundred dollar bill. Yes, this would help him nicely.

"Envy, we should go." Wrath spoke up from his position at the base of the stairs. "We could start heading towards the bus station now."

"Yeah," Envy followed Wrath's lead from the familiar house, and with one gaze back to the looming structure, they departed silently for the station.

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Before the two departed, Wrath clung sadly to his brother for longer than Envy would have felt comfortable with, but allowed himself to be held for as long as Wrath needed. When he finally pulled away, Wrath fought to avoid his brother's gaze, and scuffed his feet sheepishly on the pavement.

"I hate to see you go." Wrath mumbled, smiling behind a curtain of hair.

"I hate to go, but I guess it is for the best." Envy dropped his bags beside his pillow and blanket on the wooden bench. "But I_ do_ want to thank you again for giving me this. This chance, I mean, I don't know where I'd have gone if it weren't for you there to pick me back up. Thanks … for not giving up on me yet."

"I won't for a long time." Wrath slowly raised his eyes to meet Envy's gaze, smiling. The silhouette of a bus slowly grew over the horizon, dancing with the rising sun. Wrath sighed, not wanting to see his brother off just yet, "Geez, where has the night gone?"

"Well, I guess this is it, Wrath. I don't know when I'll see you again… but I hope you make out well at the convention thing, and get that job you want. Hope Dante and Greed don't give you too much trouble, either."

"Oh, they won't have time to. They expect me to be gone later today with the next bus, so I'll just stay with my boss for a couple of days. He's a nice guy."

They both nodded, trailing off with what they had to say. "Well," Envy began, reaching down to pick up his bags. Wrath dove down to gather the pillow and blanket, holding them out for Envy, eager to be helpful.

"Good-bye, Wrath."

"G'bye, Envy. Love you." Wrath blushed.

"Love you too." Envy chuckled, turning towards the bus as it screeched to a halt. The driver took his sweet time climbing off the bus, and opening a holding compartment under the bus for people to dispose of their bags for the time being. Dumping the bag of his clothes in storage, Envy carried his bag of items and blanket with pillow onto the bus, and settled into a seat at the back of the bus. Leaning his forehead against the cool window pane, he sadly watched Wrath scuff his heels on the pavement, hunched over himself on the bench. Within little time, after the few other passengers had boarded, and the driver had checked their tickets, the bus departed for its next stop. Wrath stood, walking slowly towards the bus until its speed gradually increased as it began through town, and he began to chase after it, yelling incoherently to Envy.

Envy fought to ignore the tempting thoughts of the brother he was leaving behind, waving sadly when the boy began to slow before coming to a stop in the middle of the otherwise empty street.

"I love you, Wrath."

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Luckily, having not known just how long the bus ride would be, Envy managed to sleep away a good portion of the trip. The rest of the time he spent doodling on papers crumpled from the process of packing, and trying to avoid thoughts of leaving the ones he knew and starting over. How was Gluttony doing? Would he be caught? Where was he now?

When it came time to transfer from the bus to a train for the final portion of the trip, Envy had drugged himself with a small package of Gravol he'd found for sale at the bus stop, and managed to collapse on a seat before passing out. Falling between dreams of murder and untamed emotions, the brief moments he'd awake in between he questioned what kind of a sap he was turning into. If nothing else, maybe starting new would turn him into a better person.

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By time he'd finally reached his destination the sun was setting behind a row of towering buildings reaching to the sky. Envy stared longingly at the new sight of city lights as he climbed off the train, nearly tripping over a small boy standing near the exit.

"Hey, watch it!" Envy swung around, ready to defend himself from possible attack, when he gained sight of the short boy before him.

"Hey, _you_ watch it!" The boy dropped the sign he'd been holding and raised his hands, preparing himself. "Wait; Wrath Culus?"

Envy opened his mouth to correct the boy, until he remembered the point of this trip was to get away; posing as his brother. "Yes…" He nodded slowly, eyeing the boy from top to bottom.

"I'm Ed!" Suddenly friendly, the boy grabbed a hold of Envy's hand and viciously shook it in a manner he most likely considered cheerful. "I was here to meet you. We're going to be room mates!"

"Wow; you're beautiful." Envy stared with wide eyes. When the short boy stared uncomfortably, shifting from foot to foot, Envy realized he'd spoken out loud and slapped a hand over his mouth. "Dude; what the hell? I was joking. I'm not gay." He punched Ed lightly in the shoulder, chuckling to himself.

**AN: **Sorry for any mistakes in this! Just in a hurry again… want to get this posted before I go to bed.


	8. Chapter 8

**Title:** Allotted Design.

**Pairing: **None in this chapter.

**Rating:** Perhaps… Maybe PG-14.

**AN:** Wut? Wut? Movie whoring? Me? You're crazy. –coughcough- Anyone who has the chance to should go see Silent Hill. –coughcough-

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"So," Ed broke the uncomfortable silence, sneaking a glance to the boy sitting across from him. The taxi driver coughed lewdly, spraying a fine helping of saliva across the steering wheel. "Where did you say you were from?"

"I didn't."

"Oh." Ed cleared his throat, turning his attention to the world passing by outside the steamed window. The city had come a long way after its unfortunate bombings just a year before, rebuilding itself far more beautiful that it was to begin with. Trees grown to their full extent with the use of alchemy lined the streets, all blossoming with a rare and extravagant violet flower that turned orange in the late fall, but didn't fall in the winter. "Nice city, huh?"

Envy nodded a response; bluntly ignoring Ed's failed attempts to start a conversation and continued to gaze sadly out his own window, forehead pressed against the cool pane.

"A little over a year ago an underground religious cult decided that it was a city of sin because of the alchemy taught all over, and bombed most of it to the ground. You wouldn't know it now today, though."

"I bet a lot of people died."

"Yeah," Ed nodded sadly, but not giving in to the tempting thoughts of his tragically lost parents. "But everyone has learnt that death is a part of life, and has mostly moved on."

"Were there limbs strewn around?"

Ed cocked an eyebrow, "Well, I guess so… though I'd rather not to think about it."

_ENVY'S POV._

'Fuck! I can't believe I said that out loud.' Envy thought to himself, knocking his head quietly against the window pane. 'So stupid of me; I bet he thinks I'm a freak now. Though it's not like that's never happened before. This school'll probably be no different than the last, though at least there I knew everyone and what shit to expect from them.'

"So," The short one was trying to speak. Do I respond? Or do I ignore him… If I seem too eager to talk to him, he'll _really_ think I like him. Jeez! It would have been so much easier to just stay home and let the jocks kill me. When did I get so angsty? I'm not supposed to be angsty; I'm supposed to be tough! And… mean!

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When they finally reached the school, Envy was near on the verge of strangling his to-be roommate. Once he'd started the boy had continued talking the entire hour long ride from the train station, telling stories of the city in the past, and of the other boys at the school. The taxi driver took a code from Ed to put the fee on a school tab, and the two boys began unloading Envy's things from the car.

The grey brick structure loomed high over their heads, windowless and symmetrical, reminding Envy of something he'd see in a movie representing a prison.

"This is it! Oh, but don't worry, it's a lot nicer inside." Ed grinned happily for reasons Envy couldn't fathom, but obediently followed him up the cement stairs and inside. Low and behold, the boy had been right; the inside of the school was furnished with crisp, wooden furniture, rich red rugs and colourful paintings. The entire building seemed to swell with life; students bustled from floor to floor, some lugging books and laptops, others laughing and joking playfully with each other.

"Our room is on the third floor. Follow me." Ed greeted everyone they passed, though none paid any heed to the quiet boy following him.

Their room was painted a rich blue, much unlike the puke green of Envy's previous room, and one side was lined with various alchemy promotion and band posters.

Dropping the bag he carried onto one of the beds, Ed held his arms out welcomingly, "This is it! It's not much, but it's nice and cozy. That," he pointed to the bare side of the room. "is your side. We're allowed to put posters and all that on the walls, but we can't use tacks. No holes in the wall."

"Couldn't they just fix the holes with alchemy?"

"Well," the boy scratched his nose thoughtfully. "I guess they could, but the point of a school is to have pointless rules, right?" He laughed, and then continued with his oral tour of the school.

"Down the hall to the left is the bathroom; it has group showers, so I hope you're comfortable with that."

Envy swallowed uncomfortably.

"Annnnd… hmm. The cafeteria is on the first floor; they serve the three basic meals a day, and you can get snacks down there in between. Though I wouldn't recommend it… the school officials are on some health craze, so about all you'll be able to get there is granola bars and oatmeal cookies." He chuckled to himself, but trailed off when he noticed the lack of amusement in Envy's expression.

"Okay." Envy nodded, beginning to silently unpack his few changes of clothes and folded them nicely into the drawers near the foot of his bed.

"Didn't you bring your uniform?"

"Uniform? I didn't get one… should I have?" Envy looked back through the open door to the students passing by, and for the first time noticed they all wore the same black slacks, button-up shirt and tie.

"Yep! Casual clothes are only allowed outside of the school. So c'mon! Let's head down to get you hooked up." He hopped from the foot of his bed and grabbed a hold of Envy's arm, pulling the bewildered boy after him.

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"So, you didn't get a uniform, hmm?" A heavy set woman circled Envy, eyeing him up and down. "Usually they're sent out in the mail for you to have when you arrive."

"Yeah, well, I didn't know I was even coming here until yesterday."

"So…" The woman pushed her glasses back up her nose and peered back down to her clipboard. "Wrath Culus, let's get your sizes. Please remove all your clothes but your underwear."

"What? I'm not stripping naked in front of you." Envy clung desperately to his remaining dignity.

"I'm sorry, son," She peered over her glasses, "But you're going to have to in order for me to get your sizes. I don't want you wearing a uniform that is too big, _or_ too small; it won't give a good impression of the school."

Envy bit back any rude retorts and slowly began to remove his clothes, starting with his sweater. He hesitated, unsure as to whether any bruises and cuts remained visible across his chest and shoulders, but knowing he didn't have a choice, continued until he stood stripped of anything his boxers.

The large woman turned to face him from her desk against a wall, clutching a measuring tape in hand.

"Well, aren't you a tiny one; have to start fattening you up." She tapped a protruding shoulder bone to emphasize her point.

Fading, brown bruises littered his chest, but she didn't seem to notice, or did but didn't say anything.

"Well, you're tall, but a lot skinnier than most of the boys here, so I'm pretty sure we'll still be able to find a uniform in your size. It's really only the higher sizes that are all out."

The woman disappeared into an adjoining room, leaving Envy uncomfortably bare in the center of the room.

"Hey, Wrath! Guess wha—" Ed burst into the room, but skidded to a stop when he realized how uncomfortable his intrusion was for the both of them. "Oh, sorry!" He slapped a hand over his eyes, and thought for a moment to remember what he'd come in to say. "Uhm… oh, right! Some of the guys and I are goin' to watch a movie later on, d'you wanna come?" He was eager to help the new boy make friends.

"Uh, sure." Envy wrapped his arms protectively against his torso, turning away from the blonde boy.

"Okay! Well, uh… just ask Mrs. Fansilia to point you in the direction of the TV room when you're done here." Ed spat out quickly and then ran from the room.

'Oh, great.' Envy thought to himself, peering down his chest at the healing abuse. 'Maybe he didn't notice.'

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Running to meet the other guys in the TV room, Ed couldn't help but blush over seeing the nearly nude body of his new roommate, but at the same time questioned the bruises clearly evident across his chest. Why did he feel such concern for this new boy? It made no sense.

TBC…


	9. Chapter 9

**Title:** Allotted Design.

**Pairing: **None in this chapter.

**Rating:** PG-16 for language and suggestive content.

"Ed?" Finally free from the prying eyes of Mrs. Filla—whatever, I wandered aimlessly on a search for the TV room, having been in such a hurry to get away from the woman I forgot to ask where it was. After a little while I was able to come to a conclusion that all public rooms were on the first floor, whereas dorms were on the second and third floors, and it wasn't until I was back to the first floor that I noticed a map of the building in a glass case near where I'd originally started.

Leaning close, and rubbing my finger down the map's smooth barrier, I let out a triumphant _ah ha! _when I landed on a square of a room labeled TV ROOM.

"Excuse me, sir!" A small, mole of a man shoved me aside and frantically rubbed his cloth across the glass, "Don't touch the glass!" he hissed, and then disappeared down the dark hallway. Just to be rude, I pressed my hands all over it as soon as he'd left, certainly leaving my mark.

I was unsure of Edward's reasons for inviting me to watch a movie with him and his friends, but rather than assuming bad like the pessimistic little twit that I am, I decided that perhaps he was just doing a nice thing.

Hopefully I was right.

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"Edward?" The TV room was dark, and quiet; no sign of life. I was about to leave, believing I'd somehow missed the meeting or they'd immigrated elsewhere, when I heard voices from the far side of the room. I groped the wall, looking for a light switch, but quickly gave up and ventured cautiously inside, leaving the door open for at least a little bit of light.

Walking slowly, careful not to bump into anything, I was several feet from the center of the room when the door behind me closed with a thump. I could hear footsteps, someone was running. What was going on?

Turning around I tried to run back to the door, though I wasn't sure what I feared, when someone tackled me from behind. I fell heavily to the floor; the person was on top of me, holding me down.

"Wai—" I tried to cry out, but they were pushing their knees against my back, crushing me; I couldn't breathe.

"I knew you would come." The raspy voice spoke close, I could feel the person's breath brushing against my ear and their hand slowly entwining in my hair.

"Get off!" I grunted, and somehow managed to roll myself over. Frantically grabbing at the darkness, hoping to grab a hold of the person, I felt a weight lifted from my chest and I was alone.

"Shit." I stood, and as silently as I could, snuck across the room in the direction I thought the door was in. Hitting a wall, I followed it until I bumped into what seemed to be a bookshelf.

"Going somewhere?" I twirled around, hands held up defensively, but no one came close.

"Who are you?" I snarled, tottering between being angry and intimidated.

"You know who I am." I tried to follow the voice, but hit another wall.

"Who are you!"

"I told you," The voice came from behind me now. "You know who I am. And you know what's coming."

I turned, starting towards the voice again, but a pair of hands shoved me from behind. I tried to catch myself, but I stumbled over something soft on the floor and fell back down. Before I could gather myself and climb back to my feet, someone was tugging my hands behind my back, tying them tightly with a rough string fabric.

"Get _off!_" I tried to fight back, but they were too strong. Another set of hands swung a strip of fabric around my head, and tied at the back, covering my eyes.

Then it went silent, and I was alone again. I tugged at the material restricting my hands, but it only seemed to cut into the skin.

"Hello?" I cut any fear from my voice and filled its place with courage, straining to hear a response.

"Hello, Wrath Culus." Footsteps in front of me… they were coming closer.

"Who are you!" I hollered, but was shut quiet by a slap to the face.

"Don't speak unless you are spoken to." A light turned on; I could see it faintly through the tight fabric, and nothing more than dark shapes in the place of people moving around me.

"What do you want!" Another slap.

"Fuckin' nancy boy; do as you are told!"

I fell obediently silence, figuring it easier to play their game than demand what I wanted.

"Very good," The voice hovered close; I raised my head and could see a wavering silhouette looming above. "I think you know what we want from you."

"Wha—"

"Stop talking! You weren't told to speak." I snapped my mouth shut obediently. "You are not to do anything; just allow us to do what we want, and you won't get hurt."

Again there was someone behind me, shoving me down to the floor. With my hands tied behind my back, I couldn't catch myself and fell face flat into the cold floor. My nose made a cracking noise, and I could feel it bleeding, staining the floor. But I still didn't move, or try to fight back.

"Very good." The voice seemed to be circling me, and lowering down to my level. "Now… just stay still."

Two hands slid firmly down my back until they reached the hem of my pants, paused, and then in one smooth motion pulled the article of clothing down, baring skin. It was then that I realized their purpose, and tried to wiggle free, but several pairs of hands shot out of nowhere and held me still onto the floor. I tried to scream, but it was only muffled against the floor.

My entire body tensed into a knot when I felt the smooth, moist tip of a suggestive object rub against the curve of my bottom.

"Get off!" I fought against the hands holding me still, until all of a sudden everyone seemed gone. I was alone again. I wiggled pathetically over and arched my back, managing to reach down far enough to grab the hem of my pants and pull them back over my violated body.

Someone grabbed my hands, and the fabric cutting into the skin of my wrists was cut free. I jumped to my feet, tearing the blindfold off as I rose.

"What the…" Edward stood, hands on his hips, laughing with a small group of boys. They all loomed over him in height, but still he seemed to hold a power over them. He held a banana in his hand, and I knew it had all been a prank. A prank on the new boy; oh, real funny!

"Asshole!" I lunged forward and tackled Ed to the floor. His head cracked against the floor; he stopped laughing. I pinned his hands above his head with one of my own, pulling back my other arm in preparation to punch the boy, but when my eyes met his own golden ones, now wide and full of fright, I hesitated. That was all the time the other boys needed to drag me off their leader, and pull me away.

"Man, it was just a joke!" Edward jumped to his feet and threw the banana at me. "Don't get so mad; we do it to everyone. They even did it to me when _I_ started here."

I stared at him, unsure as to what I felt; anger and hatred? Or was it something else… disappointment? Surely he wasn't like this; he was so beautiful on the outside.

I tore myself hastily from the boy's holding me, and stalked silently from the room without a glance back.

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"Ed? Hey, Ed!" I swung around to face my friend, who was shifting uncomfortably from foot to foot.

"Maybe that wasn't such a good idea…" The other guys nodded in agreement.

"Yeah," I turned back to the door he had disappeared through. "You're right… shit." I cursed, raking a hand through tousled, blonde locks. "I thought he looked like the kind of guy to have a sense of humor… I guess I should go check on him." I jogged from the room and made way to our room, hoping he had gone there.

"God," I thought to myself, climbing the wide stairs to the second, and then third floor. "I have a feeling about this guy; I can't let him get away this easily."

**AN: **Sorry for the short update! Just running out of time, yet again.

Sorry for any misused words, or anything else of the sort. I've read through it, but I think I'm too tired to notice anything that may need to be fixed.


	10. Chapter 10

**Title:** Allotted Design.

**Pairing: **Envy and Ed.

**Rating:** NC-17 for sexual content and language.

**WARNING. THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS SEXUAL CONTENT BETWEEN MALES. **

**If this does not float your boat, or turn your crank, be gone! **

"Wrath?" Ed cautiously entered their dorm room, peering around the empty space. "Crap." The window on the far wall was open, curtains floating in the breeze coming from the back yard. Taking no chances, Ed surveyed the tree ridden lawn in case the run away boy had made a quick escape through the open window, though he doubted anyone could get through the small space easily enough to land safely. He was turning around to further his search elsewhere when a shadow figure danced across the lawn in the corner of his eye.

"Wait!" He called, holding onto the ledge of the window and slowly climbing out one leg at a time. Wondering if it would have been better to just wait for the boy to return to their room, he hung from the open window, and less than gracefully dropped to the grass below. "Wrath!" He chased the dark figure around the corner of the building and into the large garden planted by previous owners of the school, stumbling over roots and stones through the maze of hedges.

_ENVY'S POV._

"Persistent little twit!" I called over my shoulder to a mouthful of fluttering hair, ducking around a corner, and then dug myself through it back to the other side after the boy had followed. I felt around the ground for a rock, and threw it over the hedge in the direction of the boy, only furthering his chase. Skittering in the opposite direction I ducked behind an overgrown rose bush on the far side of the garden, and held my breath to listen. I could hear him rustling amongst some fallen leaves not far off, and then the garden fell to a silence of nightly sounds.

"Boo!" The blonde boy suddenly lunged through the bush behind me, grabbing my shoulders as he tackled me to the ground. I shrieked by reflex, but caught myself and adding a few curses at the end for masculinity.

"Get off me!" I struggled to fight the boy off, but he held tight to my shoulders and pushed me hard into the ground below.

"Wrath, listen to me!" He forced me over onto my back with strength surprising for his size, and pinned my arms to my sides. "You really need to stop running away; I only wanted to apologize for earlier and explain our intentions."

"Get off me, Ed!" I tugged at his restricting hands, aiming to throw him away and run again, but he replaced his grip with heavy knees, digging into my wrists, and slapped his hands to each side of my face and held me still.

"Listen to me!" He emphasized each word with a slight squeeze of my face, staring down intently. "We didn't mean you any harm; it was only a joke; fazing, if you will, like in frat houses."

"This isn't a frat house." I responded with a general lack of enthusiasm.

"I know that… but we do it anyways. It's been done since the school opened; don't take it seriously, and don't hold it against us all. I'm sorry you took it as offensively as you did." He finished with a dramatic sigh, and fell silent, waiting hopefully for forgiveness.

"Edward," I paused, hoping to emphasize my anger. "You really need to know more about a person before you faux sexually assault them. Perhaps you should figure out a new prank to pull." He didn't respond, but only continued to stare down at me silently, until he rolled over and sprawled across the ground next to me.

"Nice stars tonight, hm?"

"Yeah."

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Over the following weeks a strange friendship blossomed between the two severely different boys. When together they didn't see much of the other boys in the school, who all fought back jealousy of the boy who had abducted their friend, and though many suspected that something more than friendship held the two together, no evidence proved them true.

Ed had opened to his friends only weeks ago that he'd frequently found himself more attracted to those of the male genre than the female, though had never been intimate with either so couldn't say for sure, and though he hid it well his friends had been less than surprised by the news.

All through the school, from room the room, whispers circulated from student to student, male and female, of the new relationship populating the school. Maybe questioned the interest their blonde classmate felt towards the palm tree of a boy they all knew so little about. When alone the two could be heard from near by rooms laughing and yelling, but when around others Envy hung back and was silent, only speaking when spoken to by Ed.

"I heard they went to the school nurse for condoms last week; some guy that knows my room mate's best friend heard it all!"

"I heard that Wrath is really a woman and only talks to Ed because he saw him naked in the shower."

"I heard they dated years ago when they both lived in another country!"

"I heard Wrath pays Ed to pretend to be his friend."

The rumors circulating the building didn't seem to reach the two victims, or simply didn't waver their happiness when together.

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"Ah, yes," Envy thought to himself, gazing longingly at the flushed boy below him. They locked eyes and an unspoken trust hung between them as Envy carefully eased himself into Ed's prepared passage, moaning freely in bliss at the tight heat enveloping him.

"Wrath?" No Edward, don't speak now. "Wrath!"

Flung rudely back to reality, he found himself alone in the bed, the victim of his fantasies watching curiously from his own mound of blankets across the room.

"You were talking in your sleep again." Ed flopped back down, face first, amongst his pillows.

Envy watched the boy, waiting for his breathing to fall shallow with sleep, and then rose to get a closer look.

Pale like peeking through the open curtains danced playfully over Ed's naked back, illuminating the dips and curves of protruding bones and toned muscles.

Envy stared, memorizing every aspect of the body shown before him, previously only a figment of his imagination.

His fingers trembled and tensed straight out, hovering over the flush skin below.

"No," He whispered, clenching his hand into a fist. "Mustn't touch. No, this isn't the time." He readjusted his pants uncomfortable, and ran to the showers to release the tormenting tension growing in his groin.

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"So Wrath," The burly boy sitting across the table paused, waiting for dark eyes to lock with his own. "What kind of name is _that_? I mean, were your parents crazy fury machines?" He laughed obnoxious at his own feeble attempt to make a joke.

"Where I come from there are seven of us named after the deadly sins, and though we don't know why, no one has questioned it." He swallowed a remaining mouthful of his black coffee, and excused himself to fetch a refill.

"Marcus!" Ed scowled though a mouthful of half-chewed food. "Leave him alone."

"Hey," The boy raised his hairy arms defensively. "I was only tryin' to make some friendly conversation. Besides, it _is_ a weird name."

"I like it." Ed smeared a heavy helping of butter across his fourth piece of toast.

"You would; _Wrath! Ooohhh, Wrath!_" Marcus stroked his hands all over his chest to emphasize the mock sexual cries.

"'Shut up! We're just friends." Ed threw his toast at the boys' face, but missed and it stuck to his broad chest.

"Hey, man, this is a new shirt!" He peeled the bread from his front and tossed it aside, then jogged to the bathroom to wash off the sticky substance.

"Edward! What did I tell you about throwing food; it simply is not nice. Although I'm sure it was deserved this time, whether because of something he said or soley for the fact that he's an ugly cunt bag." Envy snickered and took his seat next to Ed.

Now that they were alone, Ed turned to face Envy.

"So, Wrath, since tonight is Friday I was thinking that… well, would you be willing to… if you want… we could go to a club tonight!" He shoved a roll into his mouth for comfort.

Envy laughed in amusement of Ed's uncharacteristic shyness. "Of course, it sounds like a good idea."

"Great! Hmm… we'd have to sneak out of the school though, 'cause students aren't technically allowed to leave unless for family reasons."

"Ooh, dirty rebels, aren't we?"

"Fag!" Marcus returned loudly to the table, hiding a large, wet stain across his chest with crossed arms. "Throw food at me again and I'll shove your cock down your throat!" He laughed at his own crack on Ed's sexuality, and punched the boy jokingly. "Naw, I'm just pullin' your chain." He chased after a girl passing by.

"I hate him." Envy scowled, but Ed shrugged it off.

"He means well."

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"So Ed," Envy called over the wail of the old showers, rinsing remaining shampoo from his tangles of hair. "What kind of club is this?"

Ed towel dried his hair in front of the wide mirror, frequently sneaky peeks at the nude boy behind him reflecting in the glass.

"Well, it's just another club. They play more techno remixes of popular songs than original techno, and they do also have a bar for those who are old enough and can afford it."

"Do you drink?" Envy casually walked to the mirror, confident in his almighty nakedness, and wrapped his previously discarded towel around his waist.

"Not really, no. I mean, I tried it once or twice, but it wasn't really my thing."

"Oh." Envy began rubbing strands of his hair between towel wrapped hands. "It's not a gay bar, is it?" He chuckled uncomfortably, still trying to regain his lost masculinity after their first meeting.

"Oh! Uh, no…" Ed disposed of his towel in the allotted bin and, readjusting his oversized pants, excused himself to their room.

"Shit." Envy scowled, flicking his reflection a rude gesture, and hurried after Ed.

"Wait," He followed the boy into their room. "I mean, it's not like I have anything against gays, or anything."

"Oh, of course." Ed nodded knowingly. "They're just people too, right?" He dropped his pants and donned a pair of casual, black leather pants.

"Ooh, no underwear?" Envy snickered playfully. "Planning to meet up with some ladies tonight?"

"A guy can only hope for some action, right?"

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After an hour of frantically running around the room, the two finally dubbed themselves appropriately clad for the club scene. Much to Envy's fancy, Ed had added a matching, and equally tight, black leather shirt, topped with a pair of oversized boots. Similar in style, Envy wore the tightest black pants he could find in his dresser, with an equally fit black t-shirt, and a dark purple scarf tied around his neck. Adding a slight touch of black eyeliner, he donned his old Converse High Tops, and declared that he was ready to go.

Deciding to ignore the cold outside so to avoid having to find somewhere in the club to safely leave their jackets, they climbed through the open window of their dorm room and skittered silently across the lawn. They hung close to the wall of the building and moved quickly in front of the windows, though they knew that any students who saw them wouldn't purposely get them in trouble, any teachers wouldn't be happy to see the two running off.

Once to the street they hailed a cab and dived inside, giggling triumphantly at their escape.

"To the Bluebirds club." Ed directed the driver, and then hopped around in his seat to face Envy. "This is so cool."

"I know; I swear I haven't been out of that building in forever."

"It's only been a month or so since you came, stupid head."

"Don't call me stupid head, _shrimp_!"

"Palm tree!"

"Ooh, you're going to get it!" Envy dove forward and began play punching the boy below.

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Even before the car came to a complete stop, bass from the music within the club seemed to vibrate them completely, and sharing excited grins, they split the taxi fee and made a quick exit.

"I've never been to a club before." Envy confessed.

"Really? You seem like the kind of guy that would be quite popular in the club scene." Ed grinned cheekily and tugged his friend close behind through the bolted, steel doors guarding the entrance.

The couple paused for only a moment to survey the scene before them; bodies cluttered the dance floor, pulsing to the beat of the music blaring from speakers scattered around the building, and velvet lined booths lined a far back wall connecting to the neon green lit bar. People all around them yelled over the music to one another; many groped and kissed, and drank from small glasses that seemed to glow rainbows from the flickering lights passing over the crowd.

Ed tugged Envy's arm to get his attention, and pointed to himself, then to the blinking _bathroom_ light across the room. Envy nodded and watched the boy disappear into the trembling mass of bodies, and then made his own way towards the bar. Despite being a year younger than the legal drinking age, he'd been able to pass himself off as an adult for a couple of years now, whether due to his height or the menacing attitude many had referred to him as having.

He was swallowing back his third shot of ill-tasting vodka when Ed finally reappeared, panting, with strands of hair already matted to his forehead. He looked beautiful.

"Hey!" Ed yelled over the music and crowd around him, pointing questioningly to the empty glass swinging between Envy's lithe fingers. Envy grinned cheekily and turned back to the bartender to order another for himself, and one for Ed, who shook his head when the small glass was pushed into his hand. Setting the glass back down onto the black tiled bar, Ed shook his head again, but watching Envy tilt his head back to take the sloshing liquid he felt a tug of pressure and picked it up again. Hesitating briefly, he swung his head back and took the small glassful at once, choking and sputtering at the foul taste as he set the glass back down. Envy lips twisted into a smirk, and he turned again, motioning for the bartender to pass him an entire bottle of the alcohol. Tossing a few bills across the bar, Envy grabbed a hold of Ed's wrist and led him with determination through the crowd. By complete luck, one of the booths at the far back happened to be empty, and the two settled down comfortably in it. Ed's face was still contorting in disgust at the foul taste wafting from his tongue when his glass, freshly refilled, was placed back in front of him. He shot Envy a sort of _Ihateyouforthis_ glance, and then swallowed down the liquid.

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As the bottle reached its end, and was discarded under the table, Envy scraped his finger around the bottom of the glass, and licked the remaining droplets eagerly.

Ed laid face first into the table, fighting off a primary sickness, babbling incoherently to himself.

When a techno remix of an old Mozart song blasted through the room, Envy immediately straightened and began to sing along with his own, made up lyrics. Ed sickly raised his head to watch the boy when Envy grabbed his hand in his own, and held it close against his chest, face contorting in a fashion mocking the way romance singers often appeared. Ed giggled drunkenly, amusement taking over the feeling of sickness as he scooted close to lean heavily against Envy.

"Wrath!" He hollered over the music, lips pressed near to the ear of his friend. "I've loved you since the moment I saw you!"

Envy burst into a fit of exaggerated giggles, until he took notice of the serious expression on Ed's face, and slightly sobered up.

"I really did think you were beautiful!" He called back, and Ed seemed to understand what he said over all the noise around them.

Jumping to his feet Envy grabbed hold of Ed's hand and pulled him towards the dance floor. Digging his way through the other dancers towards the center, he tugged Ed's body close against his own and held firmly to his hips. Ed obediently wrapped his arms around the taller man's waist, and the two easily formed a grinding motion to the rhythm of the music.

Lost in the moment and the vast amount of intoxicating beverage swimming through his veins, Ed gave not a second thought to wrapping his hand around the flushed skin of Envy's neck, and pulling him down for a kiss.

Responding immediately, Envy molded his lips against those pressed close, and delved his tongue within the wet heat to explore the depths he subconsciously claimed his own.

Soon enough their dancing excelled to frantic fondling, hands snaking freely under clothing, and wet kisses with roaming tongues. Stumbling with mixed emotions of intoxication and arousal, the two pushed back to an empty booth at the back. First Envy followed by Ed, who crawled onto the boy, straddling his thighs and tore the thin t-shirt over his head, quickly followed by his own. Eager for contact Envy arched into Ed's touch, cool fingers twisting over the hairless chest open for him, tongues tangling in a battle for dominance.

Ed wasted no time in unzipping his pants and guiding Envy's hand within.

"Wait—" Envy pulled away from the kiss, tilting his head back obediently as Ed transferred to ravaging his neck. "We shouldn't do this here."

"No, it's okay." Ed nipped his earlobe playfully. "After 2AM sexual activities are legal here." He eagerly arched his hips into Envy's hand.

"Great." Envy eased Ed's aching member from his constricting pants, and stroked him to further hardness with expert movements. "God, Edward; you're so beautiful." He murmured more to himself than to anyone listening, grazing the toned stomach and chest with his free hand, pinching the little pink nubs to stand on end.

Ed's moans, growing in consistency, turned into an incoherent babble of all that he felt, thrusting his hips eagerly into Envy's hand.

As the music pulsed around them, all others seemed to disappear from the scene, and the two were left alone amongst the other sweating bodies, lost in their own world of bliss and affection.

"Ohgodohgodohgod," Ed clung desperately to Envy's bare shoulders, nails digging into the smooth skin as his entire body tensed with wave after wave of pleasure. Recognizing the signs of oncoming climax, Envy latched his lips over Ed's open mouth, swallowing down his moans of utter bliss as he came all over Envy's pale chest.

Resting his tired head on Envy's shoulder, Ed hunched over and went still aside from the panting breaths wracking his chest. After a few moments, allowing himself to recuperate from the ordeal, Ed snuck a small kiss against Envy's lips, and then dropped under the table and to his knees to repay the favor.

Envy obediently arched his hips from the velvet seat below, allowing his pants to be tugged down and giving into the wet heat enveloping his length, struggling for the incoherency of bliss to overtake his mind, he fought back questions and inner turmoil. You know, Ed's only doing this because he's drunk. He doesn't really like you. He's going to hate you for getting him drunk, and letting this happen.

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**AN: **Wut? Wut? About time there was some dirty? haha. Well, as with always, I apologize for any mistakes that I may have missed while rereading this chapter, and I hope that you all enjoy it!

Also; thanks again for the reviews I've been receiving with each chapter that I post. Don't stop!

Now! Excuse me while I go touch myself. I mean… play with Barbies… -shifty eyes-

haha. Just kidding.

-whispers- Amanda! You better be writing more of yours. –shakes fist menacingly-


	11. Chapter 11

**Title:** Allotted Design.

**Pairing: **Envy and Ed.

**Rating:** PG-13.. perhaps. For suggestive comments.

When Envy awoke late the following morning he was less than surprised to find himself alone in the room, and more importantly; alone in the bed. His own bed on the far side of the room lay untouched from the last time he'd slept in it before their escapades to the club, as the two had collapsed together into Ed's bed upon returning to the school and rode the night away.

The blankets provided by the school were rough and uncomfortable against his nude body, so after much deliberation he rose to dress himself. He was hopping awkwardly around the room, trying to put his pants on, when the door opened and Ed froze before entering. The two stared at one another, neither uttering a word.

"Edward…" Envy began, but before he could continue Ed turned and ran from the room. Envy swore, and buckling his pants, ran after the boy, tripping and stumbling over the small groups of students cluttering the halls. Following him into the bathroom, Envy paused, watching Ed skid across the floor on his knees and against the toilet, spilling his guts into the porcelain bowl. Biting back a pang of guilt knowing that it had been he that seduced Ed into drinking the night before, Envy silently walked over and knelt to join the boy on the floor.

"Just let it all out." Envy whispered, soothingly rubbing his palm in small circles across the bare back of his heaving friend.

"No!" Ed flung Envy away from him, opening his mouth to say more but turned back to the toilet to spew out vomit before the words could escape. "Don't touch me." He cried, choking back the wicked tasting bile.

Envy stepped away, taken back by the rude gesture of the boy who now ignored him completely, retching pitifully, face buried in the bowl.

"Oh god," He thought to himself. "What have I done? Ed hates me now; I should never have let him drink; I should never have let him do what he did! Oh, I should have known this would happen." He rose bitterly to his feet, trudging back to their dorm room to await Ed's return. "What do I say to him? Should I just pretend that nothing happened last night? Or should I just leave him alone until he talks to me. Damnit! It was his decision to drink! He didn't have to if he knew that when drunk he couldn't hold himself back; it's just as much his fault as mine that this has happened."

By time Ed returned Envy was fully dressed and sitting on his bed, stressed and waiting for his roommate to return, only fearing the worse but determined to defend himself against any accusations Ed may have of forcing him to do things.

"Ed!" He jumped from his bed as Ed entered the room, holding out an accusing finger. "Don't you dare blame me for what happened last night! I didn't make you do anyth—"

Ed cut his lecture short with a tight hug, enveloping the taller boy in his arms and holding him close.

"Edw—"

Ed shook his head, cutting him off again. "No, don't—I'm not angry at you… not at all. I just don't like being touched while I throw up." He grinned sheepishly. "It makes me feel like a pathetic child."

Envy had to laugh at his own stupidity, overjoyed that he had assumed wrong about Ed's outburst of anger.

"Besides; you don't have to apologize for last night. If nothing else, _I_ should be apologizing for coming on to you." He chuckled uncomfortably, shuffling his feet against the floor.

"Oh, Edo-Chan! Don't be foolish; how could I regret last night? Although I don't remember much of it…" He scratched his forehead thoughtfully. "I can distinctly remember enjoying it."

Ed's face lit up with the knowledge that the night before hadn't been a complete alcohol induced mistake, and he jumped close again, throwing his arms around Envy's neck and tugging him down for an eager kiss.

**AN:** Aye, this is a short chapter. I was going good with the inspiration, but then, after realizing I'd lost the money saved for my cab downtown, I kind of.. er.. got angry. hah. No longer in the mood to write, although I'm most sure it'll be back soon!


	12. Chapter 12

**Title:** Allotted Design.

**Pairing: **Envy and Ed.

**Rating:** PG-16.. for violence and suggestive comments.

**AN: **Woohoo! Hurrah for metal. Just got my lip pierced; my 11th piercing! –excited-

**ALSO… **This chapter goes out to my dear friend **Amanda** after she RPed with me practically all day today, inspiring me to write this.

"So where does this leave us?" Envy stared at the ceiling with a general lack of excitement, after Ed had confessed to it making him uncomfortable when Envy stared at his body.

Lying beside him on the messy bed, Ed shrugged. "I don't know… I'd like to be able to consider you my boyfriend." He hid a blush by burying his face in the crook of his elbow.

"I'd like that too." Envy answered after a heavy silence, cocking his head to smile at Ed, who peeked from under his arm and smiled back.

"Time to get up faggots!" Marcus burst into the room without even the thought of knocking, and the two were happy they'd at least taken the time to get dressed after their wild sexcapades. "Oh jeez, I was only jokin' but you're actually on the same bed!"

Envy flicked Marcus a rude gesture with a certain finger, and excused himself from the room.

"Marcus, really," Ed rose to a sitting position and made himself comfortable leaning against the wall. "Don't be such an ass. Just because we were lying on the same bed doesn't mean we're both gay. You just wish we were; wouldn't you like having that thought to masturbate to." Ed grinned with his lie, not wanting to let out their little secret just yet, and knowing Envy would feel the same.

"Shut up!" The burly boy threw a dirty shirt discarded on the foot of the bed at Ed, and then sat amongst the tousled blankets. "I just wanted to ask you a question… Uh, well, okay. So my girlfriend was like _Marcus! You never want to go out with me! You just like seeing me when we're alone to have sex! _And I was like _Monique, that's totally not true! Fuck; I took you to the movies just the other night._"

"You told me about that date; you guys had sex in the theatres."

Marcus ignored Ed's correct statement, and continued with his conflict. "And so, like, what can I do to get her to shut up?"

"Well, gee," Ed scratched his head and mumbled to himself, bluntly mocking Marcus' stupidity. "Maybe you should take her out for dinner! Stoooopid." He chuckled to himself and threw the dirty shirt back at Marcus.

"You're no help." Marcus stalked from the room, yelling at a small group of boys huddled in the hallway as he passed.

Ed was gathering the clothes, both his own and Envy's, scattered around the room and sorting them into a nice pile in the corner of the room when Envy returned, carrying a mug of freshly made coffee for each of them.

"Oh, how nice of you." Ed cooed jokingly, diving to the floor near his bedside table and pulling a few sugar packets from the drawer.

"You keep sugar by your bed?" Envy cocked an eyebrow, amused.

"You don't?

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After much deliberation over what to do on their day out of classes, the couple took a taxi downtown and wandered aimlessly until Envy found another coffee shop and, barely suppressing his need, purchased his fourth coffee of the day.

As the two walked lazily through the cluttered sidewalks, passing by small shops and venders calling out to them, Ed reached over and took Envy's hand in his own. Envy, surprised, looked down to his hand entwined with Ed's, and then smiled as they locked eyes.

The two paused to gaze up the sky high steeple of a looming cathedral near the edge of the city; music and voices could be heard from the inside.

"It's so nice downtown; we should come down more." Ed sighed happily, stealing a chaste kiss when Envy looked down to him.

"Yeah," He smiled. "We should."

As they continued their journey down the block, a woman with wild, tousled grey hair stuck her head out a window of the church, and then disappeared back inside.

"Hey!" Ed threw himself against the broad window of a store they passed. "Pins & Needles tattoo and piercing parlor; we should get something done!"

"_You_ should get something done." Envy finished off his black coffee. "I, personally, don't like having unknown things piercing my body… unless we're talking about in bed." He grinned cheekily.

Ed scoffed, but chuckled under his breath, pulling Envy forcefully into the store. A woman with neon green hair and a vast amount of facial piercings smiled as she passed them, leaving as they entered.

The main room of the shop was painted black and faded into a dark purple near the back, stopping at the two, parallel doors both painted with the exaggerated figures of two men in tribal clothing, each holding what appeared to be piercing needles to the other's neck.

Ed bounced around the room, peering into all the glass counters and racks of talons and tunnels ranging in all different colours and sizes, while Envy paused near the door, reading over a piercing and price list encased in glass.

A young man in black, button up shirt came through one of the doors at the back, smiling when he saw the two, eager customers.

"Can I help you with anything?" He peeled white, plastic gloves from his hands and threw them into a can under the counter.

"We're just looking." Envy replied.

"For now." Ed added with a grin.

"Alright, sounds great; listen, I need to finish cleaning up so if you decide you want something, just call for me." He disappeared back through the door he'd come through, leaving the two alone.

Tugging Ed close, Envy wrapped his arms around his neck from behind, resting his chin on the top of the blonde head.

"You wanna get something?"

"Hmm…" Ed stroked his chin thoughtfully, reading over the list of possibilities.

"I think you should get a small hoop in your nose… it would look sexy." Envy pressed his lips against the warm skin of Ed's neck.

"Y'think?" Ed turned his head to look over his shoulder.

"Definitely."

"You do realize that means you'll have to get something too… right?"

"I don't know wha—"

"Tongue! You should get your tongue pierced. I mean…" Ed blushed at his sudden outburst. "It would be nice. Er… sexy."

"Kinky." Envy laughed with a smug expression. "I'll give it some thought."

Within moments the two found themselves led to one of the back rooms; the room was painted a sterile white, and was bare aside from the large, lay-z-boy chair in the center, a steel table and a wall full of cupboards.

"So what can I do you for? Oh, I forgot to mention; I'm Porky, and I'll be your piercer today."

"I'm Ed, and this is Wrath." Ed pushed Envy roughly down onto the seat, and then got comfortable on his lap.

"Wrath, huh? Is that your birth name?" Porky turned back to them with a prepared tray of his instruments, setting it carefully on the small table by the chair.

"Yeah." Envy nodded slowly, wrapping his arms affectionately around Ed's waist and resting his chin on his shoulder.

"That's cool, but anyways, what did you want done?" He slapped on a clean pair of plastic gloves, snapping the elastic around his wrists.

"I want my nose done, and I think Wrath is going to get his tongue done."

"Hoop or stud?"

"Oh, a hoop please, on the left side." Ed settled back comfortably against Envy.

"Normally I wouldn't let the two of you sit in the chair like this while I pierce you, but I'll let it pass this time." He scooted his stool closer, and began to wipe Ed's nose sterile with a cool gel, then cleaned it off.

"Okay, once I get the clamp on, I want you to stay perfectly still; don't kick, hit or pull away; it'll only make things more painful for you."

"More painful?" Ed swallowed uncomfortably, intertwining his fingers with Envy's. Envy squeezed his hands reassuringly.

"Well, it is through cartilage, so it'll hurt a bit, but it's a very short lived pain." Porky leaned closer, holding Ed's chin with one hand, and carefully pinching the clamp onto his nostril. "Okay, take a deep breath when I say… Now." He pierced the hollow needle through his nose in one, swift motion.

All the muscles in Ed's body tensed in unison, and he groaned, digging his nails into Envy's hands.

"We're almost finished." Porky turned away to strip the plastic from the selected hoop, and carefully pulled the needle out, pushing the hoop through immediately after. Once he'd clamped the hoop to size and popped the ball on, he pushed his stool back and clapped his hands together. "All done!"

Ed opened his eyes slowly, reaching up to gently touch his nose. Envy reached around and tugged his chin, forcing his head to the side so that he could get a good look.

"Looks great, babe."

"Y'think?" Ed blushed, flinging his arms around Envy's neck and hugging him close. "It hurt."

"Yeah, mine hurt a lot too." Porky tugged roughly on the hoop through his nose. "But once it heals up, you'll be great. Once I'm finished with Wrath I'll give you all the sheets you'll need with instructions on taking care of your new piercing."

Envy easily lifted Ed from his lap, and switched their positions so that Ed sat in the chair, and Envy sat comfortably between his legs, leaning forward towards Porky.

"Alright, so you want your tongue?" He pulled off his gloves and disposed of them along with the used needle and clamp, fetching a previously prepared tray of new instruments.

"Yep." Envy nodded, grinning.

"Good choice." Porky gave Ed a suggestive wink, and went down to business. "Okay, so it will pinch a fair bit, but as with the nose, once it's done it won't hurt as much; more just a short lived pain. Now… swish this until it stops burning." He passed Envy a Dixie cup of mouthwash, and waited until he had finished and disposed of the vile liquid.

Envy nodded, sticking his tongue out when it was instructed, allowing Porky to hold tightly to the tip, and pinching the clamp onto his tongue.

"Oo..kay.." Porky carefully inspected the placement of the clamp, and then turned back to unwrap a clean needle. "Take a deep breath when I say so." He held the needle steadily over the allotted space in the clamp, "Now." He expertly pushed the pointed tip through, piercing the thick muscle.

Envy cringed, "Oh'uck." He attempted to swear the best he could with an open mouth, squeezing handprints into the arms of the chair.

Ed took that as his cue and moved forward, wrapping his arms soothingly around Envy's waist. Slowly removing the clamp, and then the needle, Porky immediately pushed the barbell through and screwed on the black ball.

"Done!"

Envy snapped his mouth shut, sucking curiously on his new piercing.

"Let me see." Envy obediently turned to face Ed and stuck out his tongue.

"Ooh, I like it."

Porky grinned, "Oh, but just you wait… there are rules to follow." He tossed his gloves away, and led the two back to the lobby. "Now, since this _is_ an oral piercing, you'll have to keep an extra close eye on it; there is to be no wet kissing and no oral sex for at least a month. In other words; keep it in your mouth."

Ed sighed dramatically, crossing his arms over his chest. "Damn."

Envy grinned smugly, winking at Ed. "More fun for me."

"Oookay, so normally the two piercings together would cost about $110, but since I like you guys, and I do expect you to come back soon for more piercings, I'll cut you a deal. How about you give me $60?"

"That sounds like a great deal, thanks Porky." Ed dug his hand into his pocket to pay his half, but Envy shoved him gently away, and slapped the allotted amount in bills onto the counter, plus a tip.

"Thanks guys. Here are your instruction sheets on the after care, and if you have any questions or problems, just give us a call." He disappeared into the back room to clean up.

"Well that was fun." Envy wrapped an arm around Ed, resting it on the small of his back as they walked from the shop.

"You didn't have to pay for mine, y'know."

"Yeah, but I wanted to."

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As darkness fell and the two became tired of wandering aimlessly, they began back uptown to where they knew they could catch a bus back to the school. Passing a block of stores familiar from their journey further downtown previously, Envy steered them through the cluttered groups of adults forming outside the large cathedral they'd admired before. Everyone fell silent and watched the two as they passed, until a woman in an old, blue dress emerged from the crowd.

"Well," She began, walking towards the couple who had stopped out of curiosity. "Isn't this interesting? Ho-mo-sexuals," She emphasized each syllable. "the subject of our discussion before us now."

Envy scowled at the woman and turned to tug Ed away from them all, but a large man towering over the both of them blocked their path.

"Such a lifestyle goes against the words of God, and that makes him very angry."

"Hey, woman," Ed snapped defensively. "We're quite happy the way they are, so how about you just piss off and let us life however we want?"

Men and women around them gasped in a sort of surprised horror that anyone speak against the woman they'd followed obediently for years before.

"Ah," She calmly moved closer to the two. "You have not yet seen the evil of your ways. Then it is up to us to show them! To live like this is to deny what they, as humans, are meant to be. Let us cleanse them; let us make God happy."

The surrounding crowd cheered in agreement and two men lunged forward, grabbing Envy roughly and tearing him away from Ed.

"Wrath!" Ed ran after them, but the man who had previously blocked their escape grabbed his shoulders from behind and held him back.

"Stay."

"Get away from me! Edward!" Envy fought against the two men holding him, but they held tight, dragging him up the cement steps and into the church.

The rest of the people followed, all chanting 'Sinners!' and making way to their allotted seats in the pews as Ed was forced into the building after Envy.

Tearing away from the men with surprising strength, Envy ran back, and grabbing Ed on the way by pulled him towards the doors, only to have them slammed in his face.

Turning to face the people, knowing there was no point in trying to open the large, bolted doors.

"Let us go. This is crazy!" Ed hollered defiantly, clinging close to Envy as the woman stepped forward again. Envy pushed Ed back, standing in front of him protectively.

"It begins now." With a simple gesture the two men each grabbed a hold of Envy's arms again, dragging him up the stairs to the balcony circling the back end of the cathedral.

"Wrath!" Ed screamed, trying to run after them but he was beaten to the floor and held down with a heavy boot to the back.

Once to the top of the stairs Envy was dragged across the hard wooden floor, swung over the banister circling the balcony. He struggled at first, believing they planned to throw him over the edge but two sets of arms held him to a ladder resting against the balcony, and tied him tightly to the wooden steps.

"Now!" The woman in the blue dressed stepped to the center again, bellowing out her lecture. "It is time for us to release this sinner to the hands of God; may he be cleansed and seen fit to live with the Heavenly Father." She raised her arms dramatically, and two women baring tortures lit a fire to life in the center of the large room. "And you," She turned back to peer down at Ed. "Perhaps this will teach you of your wrongful doings, and you too will find the way of God."

The two men still on the balcony behind Envy unhooked the ends of rope from the rafters and began to slowly slack the line. Peering over his shoulder Envy frantically followed the path of the rope the two men held; it traveled from their hands back to the ceiling and through a pulley system, then attached to the back of the ladder he hung from.

He fought against the rope that only cut into his skin more and more with each tug, as the loosening lines behind him lowered the ladder slowly to the ground, closer and closer to the fire.

"Wrath!" Ed shoved the man holding him down, and clapped his hands together and then slammed them into the floor. An array formed and the fire from the pit in the center of the room burst all around him, licking the feet of the men and woman. Screams echoed throughout the cathedral as they all ran about, frantically trying to kick the flames from their dresses and pants.

With their captors busy, Ed ran up the stairs to the balcony and grabbed the forgotten ropes as they fell through the pulley system, dropping Envy close to the ground below. Using all his strength, resting his foot against the banister for leverage, Ed pulled the ropes until they began to slip. He hesitated and then let go of the ropes, using the split second of time to clap his hands together and then to the floor, transmuting the pulley system above into a crank around the rope. Frantically turning the crank, the ladder rose from the floor and closer to the balcony.

"Edward!"

Hearing his name and snapping back into reality, Ed ran back down the stairs to the forgotten flames below, now beginning to engulf the entire structure around him.

"Shit!" He froze amidst the fires, unsure as to what to do next. He had turned back to head up the stairs again to cut Envy free when the building began to collapse under the flames tearing it apart and a section of the roof fell over him, blocking him helplessly under its flaming boards.

Hearing Ed's scream for help, Envy frantically wiggled the ropes loose enough for him to reach the sheathed dagger tucked thoughtfully in the waist of his pants, and cut the rest of the rope holding him to the ladder. Falling to the floor with ease he followed Ed's yells for help to the burning rubble, and covering his eyes protectively against the sparks and smoke, he kicked the wood repeatedly aside until he could see the boy below.

Grabbing Ed's hand, Envy pulled him free from the fire and ran to the entrance, tugging him along behind. In no hurry to stop anywhere near the church, Envy continued running until he heard Ed collapse to the ground not far behind. He turned and dived down to cradle the fallen boy, hugging him close.

"Oh, Ed, what have you done this time?"

**AN: **Woohoo! Another chapter. I hope you all like it, and if you haven't made the connection, this is the same freak religious cult that tried to bomb the entire city previously because of the use of alchemy, and it being a sin.


	13. Chapter 13

**Title:** Allotted Design.

**Pairing: **Envy and Ed.

**Rating:** NC-17.

**WARNING. THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS GRAPHIC SEXUAL ACTIVITIES BETWEEN TWO MALES. **

**PROCEED AT YOUR OWN RISK. **

When Ed finally awoke he was nearly blinded by the surprising brightness of the room around him; the walls, blankets, and even tables were all white, and light poured through an open window.

A woman also dressed fully in white stood at the foot of his bed, intently reading from a clipboard in hand.

"Oh!" She cried when she noticed Ed watching her. "You're finally awake; we were beginning to worry. How are you feeling?"

Ed cringed at her sudden outburst, rubbing his temple. "Well, I have a nasty headache, but otherwise I'm okay." He lied, still feeling completely exhausted but not wanting to admit that he'd used alchemy when he knew perfectly well that it only drained him of life.

"Okay, well, would you like for me to get you something to eat? Or perhaps some pain killers?" She set the clipboard down, eager to be helpful.

"No, it's okay." He forced a smile, which she returned, and then left.

"Wrath." He whispered, shaking the shoulders the boy sleeping half on the bed, half in his chair.

Envy snapped back to reality with a surprised gasp, jumping to his feet when he fully acknowledged the sight of an awake Ed before him.

"Edward!" He held out an arm as though to hug the boy, but instead hit him roughly across the face. "Don't you _ever_ scare me like that again!" He hissed, but then calmed with a sigh and joined Ed on the bed, snuggling close to him. "I was so worried about you."

Ed rubbed his burning cheek, but smiled tenderly, stroking Envy's hair from over his face.

"I did what had to be done; you would have died if I didn't."

"What exactly _did _you do?" Envy questioned, having never before witnessed someone performing alchemy, and so was completely unfamiliar.

"Well, remember when I first told you about the religious group that tried to burn down the city because of the use of alchemy? Well, after that happened, it was decided that alchemy is never to be used… So not many people know I can actually use it. And I have some weird illness that they've never been able to name, or cure, that causes my energy to be completely drained with the use of alchemy. My father was the same way."

"Oh," Envy nodded, soaking in all the new knowledge. "Well, next time you're planning to do something crazy like that, warn me in advance."

"I will."

"Until then… I am forever in your debt." Envy gave a mock bow, and grinned, trying to lighten the mood. Ed smiled, hugging Envy close.

They remained silent, just happy holding each other close and safely, until the mood was ruined by a knock at the door. An elder man with a clipboard entered the room and introduced himself as Dr. MacAlus, shaking each of their hands before quickly scanning the information he had.

Envy scowled at the man as he separated himself from Ed and climbed from the bed, moving to casually fetch himself a glass of water from the provided picture.

"So, Mr. Elric, how are you feeling today?" He peered down through his thick rimmed glasses.

"Well," Ed cleared his throat. "About the same as when the nurse asked me last. I'm feeling fine."

"Ookay…" The doctor nodded slowly, jotting down a few notes on his paper. "Well, we've run several tests and have found nothing wrong with your system, so we've connected how long you were passed out to exhaustion. Mr. Culus here gave us information as to what had happened. I'd like to recommend some vitamins and daily supplements for you to take, as we did note that your body was low on a few necessities, and then you're free to go whenever you feel fit." The doctor handed Ed a small piece of paper with some barely legible scribbles, and then excused himself to check on other patients.

Reclaiming his position on the edge of the bed, Envy held Ed's hand tightly in his own. "So when do you want to get out of this dump?"

"Well, as soon as possible… I don't want to end up having to eat here." Ed cringed dramatically to emphasize his point, sitting up from amongst the vast sea of pillows. "Where are my clothes?"

Envy surveyed the scene, stroking his chin thoughtfully until he spotted the neatly folded mount of clothes slung over the back of a chair across the room.

"Over there," He pointed. "I don't mean to be rude, but I have a horrible kink in my leg, so you'll have to get them yourself." He lied, knowing that nothing was worn under the hospital gown, and the gown would be open enough in the back to give him a full shot of Ed's bare backside.

Oblivious of Envy's evil plot, Ed obediently climbed from the bed and casually walked over to his clothes, checking to make sure everything was still there.

Sneaky silently behind him, Envy pressed his body close against Ed's backside, sneaking a hand through the slit in his gown and under the fabric, stroking his hips and chest.

Ed first jumped in surprise, and then melted into Envy's touch, pressing back, eager for more contact.

Envy latched his mouth onto Ed's neck, and sucked the feverish skin, leaving his own mark for all to see.

"I own you." He whispered against Ed's ear, licking the delicate lobe. Ed visibly trembled, turning his head as far as he could and pulled Envy down for a kiss, eagerly searching the open mouth.

"Wait," He pulled away. "Your tongue ring… you're not supposed to kiss me."

"Hmmm…" Envy lazily kissed him again, "Since when have rules stopped me?" He captured the boy's mouth again and held him tight, one hand latched onto a protruding hip bone, while the other snuck down and around his eagerly responding member.

Edward moaned into Envy's open mouth, fighting with himself between going along with what Envy was guiding, or stopping him for the reason that they were in a public place.

"Wait," He pulled away again, cocking his head to the side as Envy nipped and kissed the tender skin at the crook of his neck. "Someone could come in at any time."

Envy nodded, knowing Ed was right. "Wait here." He lowered Ed onto the bed, and then skittered over to the door, peering curiously out the closed blinds and then locked the door. Turning back to Ed, tossing his long hair over his shoulder, he moved to join him on the narrow bed.

Settling to comfortably kneel between Ed's spread legs; he latched his hands amongst Ed's fingers and held them over his head, leaning down for another kiss. Easing a hand under his back he eased Ed slightly off the mattress, reaching to release his hair from its confining elastic. Spreading the blonde locks across the pillows, he straightened up, admiring the sight of a flushed Ed below him.

"God, you're beautiful; the measures I take to not just ravish you now." He grinned smugly, sliding his hands up Ed's smooth thighs and under his gown, leaning forward to kiss his lips, and then his chin and jaw line, then back over the bruise he'd left on Ed's neck. He reached behind Ed again, gently untying his gown and pulling it off, leaving him completely nude under the still clothed Envy.

"This isn't fair; equivalent exchanged, after all." Ed pushed himself up from the pillows, reaching to the hem of Envy's shirt and pulled it over his head, tossing it aside as had been done with his gown. "Mmm, getting there." He grinned, reaching up to kiss Envy again has he fumbled with his belt, eagerly unbuckling it and then motioned for Envy to remove his pants.

More than happy to obediently follow Ed's order, Envy stripped himself of any remaining clothes and then settled back into his previous position between Ed's legs, stroking his hardened length in sync with their erratic breathing.

"Oh god," Ed moaned, clinging to Envy's shoulders. "No more play; need you now." He managed to mumble coherently before completely giving in to the blissful pleasures gathering in his groin.

Envy nodded, pausing to lock eyes with Ed, and an unspoken trust passed between the two. Pulling away long enough to fetch a tube of lube from his discarded pants' pocket, he grinned cheekily.

"I was planning ahead." He explained casually, squeezing some of the cool gel between his fingers and rubbed them together, attempting to warm it before he delved a finger near Ed's entrance.

Ed gasped, arching his body in surprise. Envy cooed reassuringly, shifting to lie beside Ed and kiss him softly as he pushed the first digit past the restricting muscle.

"Just relax." Envy whispered, moving the finger around before pulling out, and adding a second. Scissoring his fingers, he reached for the bundle of nerves deep within Ed's body; he knew when he'd reached it. Ed cried out in surprise of the sudden jolt of pleasure, flailing his arms wildly until he grabbed a hold of Envy, clinging to him.

"What the hell was that?"

"That, my boy," Envy smiled. "was your prostate… and it gets better."

Giving Ed a few more moments to relax and grow accustomed to the new feeling of intrusion, Envy rose from where he laid and carefully lowered himself between Ed's legs.

"Are you still sure about this?" He had to question again, not wanting to force Ed into anything despite how much he wanted it himself. When Ed nodded eagerly, Envy responded by coating his own length in the cool lube, and then lined himself up at Ed's entrance. Locking eyes with the boy who clung desperately to his shoulders, he began to push forward, taking it slow so to not overwhelm Ed.

Biting back a moan as the tight heat enveloped him, he moved down to rest his chest against Ed's, holding himself raised on elbows at Ed's sides.

He paused for a moment, allowing Ed to adapt, until the boy tapped his shoulder and nodded that he was ready. Beginning with a slow and steady pace, he pulled from the boy and then thrust back forward, carefully aiming the tip of his cock to bump Ed's prostate with each movement.

Throwing away any second thoughts, Ed gave in to the wanton, desperate pleas escaping his trembling lips, crying for more and more than all that Envy gave him.

A hand snuck between their heated bodies and wrapped around the base of Ed's cock, stroking him with a rhythm common to their current pattern.

"Ohhohsweetjesus, Wrath," Ed groaned against his ear. Envy fought with himself for a moment, and then blurted out;

"Envy."

Ed stopped moving for a moment, looking at Envy curiously. "What?"

"My name is Envy. Wrath is my brother." He explained raking a sweaty hand through his tousled hair.

"Give me the details later." Ed arched his hips suggestively, caring more now to reach his peak than to understand the methods of Envy's madness.

Envy grinned, eagerly giving in and returning with ease to their previous rhythm; Ed arched his body and pushed back against each of Envy's movements, taking him deeper.

Although Envy was glad that they needn't take the time to discuss his confession, he couldn't help but question whether or not the relationship really was all about sex, and that Ed didn't care who he was either way.

"Ohgodohgodohgod," Ed mumbled aimlessly, biting onto Envy's shoulder to stop from crying out as he felt the familiar tension growing ever quickly in his groin."I'm so close." He pushed back against Envy's hips, and then up to his hand, eagerly receiving on both ends. Recognizing the signs of oncoming climax, Envy eased his pace to leisurely stroke himself against Ed's prostate, until Ed's entire body tensed at once and he came between their sweaty bodies.

As the muscles constricted around his throbbing member, Envy too gave into the ecstasy swelling between them and emptied himself within Ed's body.

Collapsing down onto Ed's chest, Envy wrapped his arms upwards around Ed's shoulders and held him as close as possible.

"Oh, God Wrath, I love you." Ed sighed. Envy's eyebrow furrowed and he had to wonder whether Ed had heard anything he'd said.

**AN: **OMIGAWD… kinky hospital bed sex…

Wut?

Sorry for any mistakes! Just in a hurry to get this posted before my internet time runs out.. yet again.


	14. Chapter 14

**Title:** Allotted Design.

**Pairing: **Envy and Ed.

**Rating:** NC-17.

**AN: **This chapter was co-written by my dearest Amanda, who comes up with the best ideas.

**WARNING. Well… need I explain further? **

Envy lie still beside Ed, attempting to calm and gain control over his erratic breathing.

"Edward?" He stared intently at a spot on the ceiling so to avoid meeting Ed's eyes. Ed's head lolled to the side, watching Envy, knowing full well what he was suggesting.

"I heard what you said." He smiled.

"Okay." Envy fell silent again, pushing himself off of the tousled sheets and began to gather his discarded clothing. "I wasn't too sure… since you didn't say anything to acknowledge it, and still called me Wrath. But I guess it's for the best; I don't need anyone else catching on." With his pants back on, he pulled his shirt over his head and lowered himself back down beside Ed's nude body.

Ed watched him, and questioned; "Catch on to what?" undeniably curious of Envy's past, though had never pressured him into sharing anything he wasn't comfortable with. "I want to know what happened before. You've always seemed so anxious around other people; why?"

"Ehh…" He swallowed uncomfortably, relaxing slightly as Ed's arms circled his neck, holding him close. Taking a deep breath, he began to tell his story; explaining in full detail of his troublesome past. He couldn't remember a time when he wasn't abused by his mother or the other kids at school, and then things went too far and he'd drunkenly provoked one of his classmates to rape him in the gym showers. Unable to do anything about it himself, his closest and only friend had murdered the boy, but Envy had been blamed after the police found out about the conflicts between the two.

"And I still don't know how Gluttony is doing… but when Dante banished me from the family home, Wrath, my brother, gave me his ticket to come here, knowing I had nowhere else to go." He finished with a relieved sigh, tucking a strand of hair behind his ear.

Ed didn't reply for a moment, mulling over all the fresh information he'd learnt from Envy. He'd long expected that Envy hadn't had it easy in the past, but not to this extent. He moved closer, burying his face in Envy's hair. "I can't imagine how you feel, but I want you to know Envy," He happily used his real name for the first time to emphasize his point. "that I really do deeply care for you, and would never purposely hurt you."

Envy smiled slowly, clinging desperately to Ed for support.

"Thank you, Edward… really, thank you. I was so afraid you'd think me some kind of freak and throw me away." He stole a quick kiss and then rose from the bed. "C'mon, let's get out of here." He retrieved Ed's clothes from where they still hung across the room.

Feeling mentally closer to Envy than he had at any time before, Ed quickly dressed himself, every so often sneaking Envy little glances.

"C'mon." He smiled; linking his arm through Envy's and led him from the hospital. "I would never treat you like that, so don't worry."

"I'm glad; 'cause if you did… I'd just have to put you in your place." He pinched Ed's butt jokingly, leading him to the main desk in the lobby to sigh him out.

"So we're heading back to the school now?" Envy slung an arm around Ed's shoulders as they stepped out into the high hung sun shining down over the city.

"Yeah. We only have one day left of the weekend, so we might as well make it the best we can." He winked suggestively, wrapping his arm around Envy's back.

Envy grinned, "I like the sounds of that." He changed his mind about lazily walking back to the school and eagerly waved down a passing taxi, pulling Ed into the back seat with him.

Within moments that seemed to pass as slow as sand they arrived to the familiar school; Ed eagerly led the way to their room, pulling Envy close behind.

Ed seemed to read Envy's mind when he'd motioned to their school provided sleeping pants that were used most often by the students on way to and from the showers.

Eagerly stripping free of their clothing, they both donned the baggy pants and hurried to the showers down the hall. Luckily for them most of the students were gone from the school, enjoying their Sunday, and so the showers were empty for the two to do as they pleased.

Being cautious, Envy bolted the door blocking the wide shower room from the bathroom stalls.

"C'mon, Envy." Ed called from his position already under the streaming water, pants left forgotten not far away. Envy obediently responded, struggling to kick his pants off as he crossed the room to the showers.

"You're so beautiful." Envy murmured as he joined Ed under the warm water, immediately wrapping his arms around the waist of the shorter boy and holding their responding bodies close.

Hands roamed freely over the newly familiar bodies of one another, groping heated flesh and memorizing every dip and curve they could reach. Ed was the first to reach between them and clasp his hand around Envy's eager cock, while sneaking his other hand up his chest to latch around the side of his neck. Leaning upward, he trailed his lips lightly over Envy's smooth collarbone, over the crook of his neck and his Adam's apple, suckling the subtle skin to now leave his own mark.

"Envy?" He murmured, reaching up lithe fingers to pull Envy's face down, pressing a chaste kiss against his lips.

"Edward?"

"I want you now."

"Here?"

Ed nodded, backing himself up against the shower wall, pulling Envy with him. Wrapping his arms around his neck, he gracefully hopped up to wrap his legs around Envy's waist. Envy held Ed's thighs until he felt Ed had steadied himself, and then reached between them to stroke Ed to further hardness.

"We don't have lube." He murmured, lips grazing the bruised skin of Ed's neck.

"It's okay; just take it slowly." Ed pushed down against Envy to emphasize his point. Envy nodded, fully acknowledging Ed's request as he slowly pressed into his body.

Ed's face contorted in the obvious discomfort of the invasion into his body, but continued pressing down against Envy's movements until he sat fully impaled on Envy's hardened length.

Envy moaned, "You're so tight. God, I love it." He held tightly to one of Ed's thighs to steady them both, while resting the other, entwined with Ed's fingers, against the tiled wall beside Ed's head.

"Move; go now." Edward squeezed Envy's fingers tightly as he began to move, pulling partially from Ed's body and thrust back forward, creating a slow but steady pace until their sweat and his own pre-cum smoothed Ed's passage enough to keep him comfortable on the receiving end.

Burying his face against Ed's neck, Envy's shallow breathing seemed to echo that of Ed's, who whimpered pleasurably with each of Envy's thrusts against his prostate.

By time Envy could feel Ed reaching his peek, he'd left a map of bruises and bite marks over his neck and shoulder.

"Ohgodohgod." Ed arched his back away from the heated tiles behind him as Envy began to stroke his weeping member in time with his _penetrating thrusts._ **AN: **that goes out to Amanda.

The two didn't take notice to the door behind them rattling with someone's attempt to get inside, until the person called out for whoever was inside to open the door.

"Ignore him." Ed groaned unhappily when Envy froze all movements.

"No; he'll get keys to the room and get in. C'mon," He reluctantly pulled from Ed's pulsing body, and lowered him to the floor. "let's go back to the room." He wrapped a towel tightly around his waist so to hide his most obvious hard-on, and passed Ed another towel, then, unlocking the door and quickly apologizing to the boy on the other side, hurried for their room.

The towels were flung aside as soon as door was closed and locked behind them, and the two fell roughly onto the nearest bed. Envy nudged Ed into a hunched sitting position against the headboard, and pushed into his familiar passage until fully sheathed within the boy. Ed held onto Envy's shoulders and pushed himself away from the headboard long enough to sit on Envy's bent thighs, then fell back to lean against the cool wood.

"I'm so clo—close." Ed moaned helplessly, clinging to Envy's shoulders while his body was steadied by strong hands holding his hips as the sweet movements connecting the two intensified; quickening with frantic thrusts.

"Ohsweetjesuscunt." Envy moaned against Ed's hot neck as he felt the already tight muscles constricting around his pulsing cock until he spilt himself with one final thrust deep within Ed's body just as Ed came between them, spurting across his chest.

As the two bodies slowly separated, trembling with the aftershock of their orgasms, Ed and Envy fell together under the sheets of the bed, happy to now just hold each other.

"Open up, faggots!" Marcus's familiar voice accompanied by rattling of their doorknob was enough to wake the two from their hazy ecstasy. Once he'd taken the hint that they weren't going to open up for him, a note slid under the door and he could be heard walking off in the distance.

With a groan, Ed reluctantly detangled himself from Envy's long limbs and staggered over to the door, bending down to pick up the paper and then climbed back into the warmth under the blankets.

"Hmm…" He chewed his lip thoughtfully, reading over the note and then passed it to Envy to read.

_All students of Mrs. Pactrony's Psychology class are to attend a mandatory, six-day field trip where they will study the social habits of society in a typical small town for three days, and the following three in another small town just months after a traumatic event. Each student will then be expected to write a 3,000 word essay comparing the interaction of the populations in each town, and have it in to Mrs. Pactrony within a week from returning to the school._

_Your interaction with the populations, the notes you take, and your final essay will count towards 25 of your final mark for the class. Any refusal to partake in the allotted events will result in an immediate failure. _

"I thought field trips only ever happened in elementary school." Envy set the paper on the cluttered bedside table, and rolled back over to hold Ed close.

"I guess not." Ed smiled, almost excited to be getting away from the school for that length of time, rather than just the two day weekends. "Well, the note said we're to leave early tomorrow morning, so I guess we should start getting packed now." Ed again detangled himself from Envy and began to redress. Reluctantly, Envy did the same, but only taking the time to don his typical, tight black pants before he jumped back onto Ed's bed, scattering the clothes he'd already neatly folded to pack.

"I don't wannnaa pack." Envy grabbed Ed's wrist and pulled him down onto the bed, stealing an affectionate kiss.

"Well," Ed laughed. "I'm afraid you'll need clean clothes during the trip, but because I'm _such_ a nice guy, I'll pack some of your stuff in my suitcase."

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Early the following morning, as had been promised on the letter, a heavy knock on the door startled the two from sleep. "Get up, ladies!" Mrs. Pactrony's voice could be heard through the wall as she continued down the hall, knocking on the doors of all her students.

"Noo…" Envy groaned, holding Ed close when the boy tried to climb from the bed to prepare for the day.

"Envy; we have to get ready." Ed again attempted to pry himself from Envy's grasp.

"Noo… I'm sick. I'm sick and dying, and I need you close while I go." He wrapped both his arms and his legs around Ed's body. "They'll have to pry us apart."

Ed hugged him back, "We're both going. It'll be good to leave the school, now come on." He pulled Envy off the bed. Envy allowed his body to go limp, and he fell to the floor, clinging dramatically to Ed's legs.

"Don't make me gooo!"

Ed bent down, perching a hand under Envy's chin and lifting his head. "I'll make you a deal; if you get ready as quick as you can, I'll show you a good time once we get to the town." He grinned suggestively.

Following Ed's idea, Envy jumped to his feet and eagerly dressed, washed, and finished packing his messenger bag with small items he thought may prove helpful on the trip.

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Ready quicker than they'd been anticipated to manage, Ed and Envy were the first on the bus provided for the trip, and so were able to get the wide, full-length seat at the back of the bus.

"So, Wrath," Ed cautiously began as other students began filing onto the bus. "Where do you think we're going?"

"Hopefully somewhere good."

After a slight delay when the storage compartment underneath the bus wouldn't latch, the group was able to begin their travel out of the city. As the bus pulled from the parking lot, Mrs. Pactrony rose from her seat at the front of the bus, and cleared her throat repeatedly until she'd gotten the attention of all the passengers.

"Well, ladies! As I'm sure you know after reading the letter I had delivered to each of your rooms, we're going to two different towns to study the behavior of the people. The first town we'll visit is just beginning to thrive again after a gruesome murder just a couple of months ago. The killer is still at large, but the police have determined he has moved on to another city, and so the town is deemed safe for us. It is…" She paused to check her notes. "Eston."

Having not paid attention to the start of her informative speech, Envy snapped back to attention at the mention of 'Eston'. Still and silent at first, struck with disbelief, he leapt from the seat and clawed his way over the bags scattered down the aisle, towards the front of the bus.

"Mrs. Pactrony! I—I can't go to Eston. I mean, I'm sick… I can't manage the bus ride there." He babbled, desperately trying to conjure an excuse to be left behind from the trip.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Culus, but we've already started so we can't go back to the school for you; besides, this _is_ mandatory; I'm sure you don't want a failing mark. If you feel sick, open a window and breathe some fresh air. And if you're really just worried about the murder that happened recently in Eston, don't worry. We'll be quite safe."

Visibly paling, Envy slowly staggered back to his seat and collapsed beside Ed.

"Envy," Ed grabbed a hold of Envy's hand, worried by his sudden outburst. "What's wrong?"

"I… I can't go back there." Envy whimpered, most obviously shaken.

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**AN: **Just to clear up a few questions about how quickly their relationship is progressing… It's going as fast as it is for a reason, though I can't completely reveal it just yet. It'll all make sense within a few chapters. And until then, well… there is a strange, inexplicable force that seems to be pulling the two together.

And, of course, the fact that Envy has had so much trouble with relationships of any sort in the past, he's just really leeching on to Ed, who has been one of the first people he's been able to trust in years.


	15. Chapter 15

**Title:** Allotted Design.

**Pairing: **Envy and Ed.

**Rating:** Barely PG-13

**AN: **Again, this was co-written by Amanda.

Envy groaned helplessly, his body visible tensing as the news of where they were going continued to sink in.

"I cant; I can't go back there."

Envy didn't have to explain further; immediately Ed knew he spoke of his hometown; the town where he'd grown up being abused, and was later even raped. And if he's still a suspect in the murder… that will only cause more trouble at his return.

Envy buried his face in his hands, "Shitshitshit. There's nothing I can do to get out of this; I'm so fucked."

"No Envy," Ed wrapped his arms around him, attempting to comfort the distraught boy. "Don't worry… I won't let anything happen to you."

"You can't stop them; if they want me, they'll get me. Ohgodohgodohgod." He began to tug on handfuls of his own hair. "If they know you're with me, they'll even go after you! I can't let that happen… I'll protect you, Edward."

"I'll watch your back while you watch mine." Ed vowed, reassuringly brushing Envy's hair from his face, although undeniably worried about what could happen to either of them.

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After an hour of frantically attempting to calm Envy, who was determined to come up with an escape plan for any and every possible conundrum that they may be struck with, Ed allowed himself to doze off when he'd noticed Envy asleep, pressed against the window.

The loud shrieking of the bus's breaks and the relieved cheers of the other students were enough to wake the two from their slumber. It'd been a long trip, but luckily they had managed to sleep through most all of it.

"Okay, ladies! Since that was such a long trip, we're not going to get started on the actual studies until tomorrow. Tonight you will be guided to your hotel rooms, two to a room, and in the morning I'll personally come to each room and wake you all up if you aren't in the lobby by 9AM sharp." Mrs. Pactrony bellowed over the chattering students, and then led them all off the bus.

"I can't go out there." Envy murmured, staring through the steamed window to the night outside.

"C'mon," Ed stood, pulling Envy up with him. "It's dark out, and it'll take only seconds for us to get into the hotel; no one'll see you."

Envy nodded, unsure, but joined the line of boys filing from the bus, and frantically pushed past them and into the hotel.

"Now," Mrs. Pactrony waved her arm, trying to catch the attention of the students. "Your bags will be brought up to you, so I want you all to get in partners and come to me, get your key, and then go to your rooms. There is to be absolutely no leaving the hotel tonight and lights out at a good time, please! I don't need a bunch of tired students to drag around tomorrow."

Envy remained against the patch of wall between two elevators, watching Ed fetch their room key, and then dove into the elevator at the first sight of the blonde returning.

Jumping inside just before the doors closed, Ed reached over to give Envy's arm an assuring squeeze but only managed to scare the tense boy.

"Sorry." Ed smiled sadly, hating to see Envy acting like this. Sure, he'd never been a very confident person, but being back where it all began only seemed to lower his assurance even further.

The elevator slowed to a sudden stop at the 4th floor; the hallway before them stretched to the far other side of the hotel, and was lighted a pale yellow colour, emphasizing the red carpet.

"C'mon." Ed placed his hand protectively on the small of Envy's back and led him down the hall. Envy ignored that the doors were all numbered in order, and checked each and every one for their number, desperate to get inside the safe confines of their own room.

"407, here it is." Ed had barely slid their room key through the crack before Envy had bolted inside and hung against the back wall, watching Ed close and relock the door.

Still pale, though visible calmer, Envy began to sort through the bag Ed had packed for them both, searching for their simple toiletries; toothbrushes, hairbrush, toothpaste, body lotion, shampoo and conditioner. Normally something he wouldn't care about, Envy carefully organized, and then rearranged it all in the bathroom, using the repetitive task to calm his nerves and frantically running mind.

When he began reorganizing all the things in his backpack for the third time, Ed took the situation into his own hands and led Envy to the bathroom, where he silently stripped the boy as they waited for the hot water to fill the long tub. After removing his own clothes, Ed stepped into the full tub first, sitting against the back with his legs spread. He motioned for Envy to sit between his legs, and began wet his long hair; he filled the provided pitcher with water from the bath, tipped Envy's head back and poured it over the tangled locks, then repeated the cycle.

Setting down the pitcher, he squeezed a large helping of shampoo onto his palm and began to work it through Envy's hair, massaging his scalp and then dragging the sweet smelling suds down to the tips.

After Envy's hair had been rinsed clean, Ed began the task of washing his back, massaging his tense shoulder muscles as he cleaned the pale flesh.

"Thank you, Edward." Envy spoke up with a soft whisper. They'd been in the bath for nearly an hour, despite that it was beginning to get cold.

"It's all I could think of doing to help you." Ed wrapped his arms around the body of the boy lying against his chest, head resting on his shoulder. "Don't worry about tomorrow, I'll take care of you; protect you."

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"Okay!" Mrs. Pactrony clapped her hands a few time to get the attention of the room full students before her. They all gradually took the hint and the group fell quiet. "Our first day, today, includes going to the local high school and spending time in a couple of the classes. Get into groups of two, and then come to me; I'll give you all schedules of all classes you are to take part in, and a map of the school."

Envy stood, frozen, against the back wall of the conference room given to the group of students. He clung tightly to the strap of his backpack, holding it much like a child would hold a teddy bear when they hear noises in their closet late at night.

"Don't worry, Envy. I won't let anything happen to you." Ed whispered close to his ear as he squeezed his shoulder reassuringly. Envy smiled slowly, leaning in to the touch.

"Edward Elric!" Their teacher called him to the front. "I'm going to assume that you're working with Mr. Culus; your list of classes to visit, and a map of the school are all in here. Along with some key questions you are to answer after spending time in each class." She passed him a brown envelope, and then turned to pass the remaining envelopes to other pairs.

The two were shipped to the nearby school on a bus with their fellow classmates to join various classrooms throughout the strange school; many were excited, and seemed oblivious of the fear plaguing the two boys at the back of the bus.

"Ican'tdothis." Envy mumbled, with his face buried in his hands. "They'll recognize me, and accuse me of killing their friend, and I'll be taken away and beaten!"

"Don't worry, Envy; what did I tell you? I'll protect you against anyone who tries to hurt you." He rubbed Envy's back with small circles, trying to comfort the distraught boy.

He fell silent to allow Envy time to think, until the uncomfortable shrieking of the breaks was enough of an omen that they had arrived.

"Envy?" Ed leaned over so to appear he was whispering to the boy should anyone be watching them, but instead carefully pressed a comforting kiss against the smooth skin behind his ear. "We have to go. Let's just get this over and done with as soon as we can; ne? Then we can do whatever we want!" He smiled cheerfully, tugging a reluctant Envy to his feet.

They were far behind the other students when Ed finally got Envy off the bus, and up the front walk. He thought they were making good progress until Envy froze tensely outside the graffiti ridden doors. The entire scene was familiar, and seemed to play back like a memory. He could almost see himself walking into the school as an everyday student, and being assaulted at his locker. They'd knock his books from his hands, and dump his backpack's contents on the floor, then, with a finishing blow, kick him to his knees. That position, of course, earned even more humiliating comments from his assailants.

"C'mon." Ed smiled, hoping to be helpful in aiding comfort as he stroked Envy's back reassuringly. "Let's just get it done and over with."

The familiar hallways were empty of most students, now filling the already crowded classrooms, while some stragglers ran to their nearest class and others walked casually slow.

A couple looked at Envy and Ed as they passed, recognizing the face hidden behind black hair, though couldn't place it as the boy they'd spent years secretly adoring for his beauty, or beating him to a living pulp for being just that reason.

Ed took the liberty of finding the classroom for them to be in, not wanting to break Envy from the world of solitude he seemed to have found peace in; until they paused outside the door of the room, and Ed reached for Envy's hand.

"Envy?" He whispered, tilting his head up with a finger under his chin, "Don't worry; I won't let anything happen to you." He smiled, and then knocked on classroom door. The teacher paused her lesson to answer the door; she was recently new to the school, and so Envy was just as much a stranger to her as Edward. Realizing they were the two she'd been warned ahead would be visiting her class from the prep-school, she eagerly ushered the two boys into the room, holding them in front of the other students.

"Students! Students!" She called out over the chattering voices. Most arrogantly ignored her until friends started to poke friends, and whispers clouded the room. "Please welcome Mr. Culus and Mr. Elric to our class today!" She smiled, then surveyed the class and pointed the boys to two empty seats at the back of the room.

Envy solemnly followed Ed to their allotted seats, hiding behind his hair as the teacher continued her usual lesson. Ed tried to pay attention to everything she said, answering the questions that had been suggested by Mrs. Pactrony, but the less than subliminal whispers floating around were distracting.

_"Hey; isn't that the Envy fag?"_

_"What's he doing back here?"_

_"Isn't he the one that killed that other kid?"_

The kids in the class didn't bother trying to hide their conversations amongst each other, until the teacher threatened detentions for them all, and then they all continued through text messages.

"Envy," Ed whispered, nudging Envy gently with his elbow. "This isn't so bad, right?" He smiled, trying to lighten the mood. Envy peeked at him through his hair; his face was pale, but he'd forced a smile.

The remainder of the class went well; with the students messaging through their cell phones, Ed and Envy weren't subject to listening to their accusations and insults, and that helped them to both listen to what the teacher had to say and happily fall into their own worlds.

Moments before the bell was to ring, the teacher instructed the students to pack up their bags while she excused herself to speak with another teacher in the hall. Ed and Envy remained still at the back of the room; Ed tried to initiate conversation, but Envy seemed to want nothing but to get from the room, and sat in agitated anticipation for the bell to ring.

When it did, and Envy rose to escape the room, a poorly shaped paper airplane bounced square into his forehead. Ed tried to kick it away and tug Envy from the room, but Envy curiously snatched the paper away and unfolded it.

_Took a lot of balls to come back here, you better be ready for what's coming. . _

A burly jock style fellow at the front of the room grinned smugly when Envy looked up from the note.

"Forget it, Envy. Let's just get out of here." Ed tugged Envy's arm to lead him through the other students and from the room; Envy obediently followed.

They were shuffling quickly down the hall, knowing now that the students of the school had time to eat lunch, and so they could escape for a while to calm down, when a familiar voice from behind called _'Envy. Envy Culus!' _


	16. Chapter 16

**Title:** Allotted Design.

**Pairing: **Envy and Ed.

**Rating:** PG-16 for language and mild violence.

**AN: **Co-written by Amanda.

**A SPECIAL WORD FROM YOUR AUTHORS….**

**And because is a whore, you may have to fix the beginning of the link to say 'http/'**

**Just copy and paste it into a new browser. **

**http/img284.imageshack.us/img284/2641/allotteddesign8bl.jpg**

**Viva la yaoi! **

"Envy!" The voice called again, and they could hear heavy, oncoming footsteps.

Envy clutched Ed's arm, anticipating only the worse; perhaps a kick to the floor, maybe a text book over the head, but instead a pair of familiar fat arms wrapped around him. Immediately knowing it was Gluttony, Envy broke into a grin and waited for the man to set him back down onto the floor so he could turn and give him a formal hug.

"Oh Gluttony! I was so worried about you." He declared while detaching himself from the shorter man.

Ed watched from the side, happy that Envy had been able to reunite with an old friend, rather than an old rival. Gluttony wasn't the man he'd anticipated after hearing stories of him from Envy; where he'd expected an average height guy with muscles from years of working out in the gym, he'd instead found rolls of fat, and a man nearly as wide as he was tall.

When Envy turned to Ed and introduced him to Gluttony, he eagerly shook the man's plushy hand, staring in almost disbelief that the large, bald man was of a high schooler's age, when he appeared he could easily pass as someone of his late twenties, and his mentality and giggles could easily be mistaken for that of a preschooler.

"Hello, Gluttony; I've heard stories about you." He smiled friendlily.

The fat man's grin seemed to envelope half his face, and his heavy tongue hung from his mouth. "Envy is good!" He declared, opening his mouth to say more but trailed off when his words could barely be heard over the rumbling of his stomach. He clutched the rolls, and groaned pitifully. "Gluttony needs food."

Envy looked from Gluttony to Ed, then back to Gluttony. "Well, Ed, are you hungry too?" He scratched his head. "We could go to a fast food place down the street, or something."

"No." Gluttony protested, rummaging through his pocket and producing a crumpled piece of paper. Envy took it, and squinted to read the barely legible writing.

"Oh!" He nodded, handing it back to Gluttony, who clutched it protectively. "Yeah, I forgot… Gluttony gets 50 off on all his food in the cafeteria, since he orders so much."

"Well…" Ed thought carefully; they could go down the street, but then Gluttony would possibly not have enough money to feed himself, and Ed would feel bad for leaving the large man hungry, or they could go to the cafeteria where he could eat nearly anything he pleased, but chance the possibility of a fight breaking out with Envy back in the scene. "Why don't we give the cafeteria a go?"

Envy didn't answer, but stared at the tiled floor, unsure.

"Gluttony and I've got your back." Ed smiled, squeezing Envy's arm reassuringly.

"Yay!" Gluttony cried excitedly, and then lumbered off, leading the other two to his favourite room in the building.

As expected, certain sections of the room grew quiet when word passed around that Envy was near, but many continued on with their previous activities of eating, gossiping, and homework.

**Does anyone else love Evolution by Ayumi Hamasaki as much as I do? heh. I'm listening to it on repeat.**

Gluttony seemed oblivious of the attention they'd attracted, and lumbered towards the food line where the Lunch Ladies all greeted him friendlily as they piled a tray high with his usual order of food.

Envy hovered behind him, sticking close to the large man, figuring that if nothing else, he could at least hide amongst the man's rolls should something happen.

Ed browsed the daily menu scrawled onto an overhanging chalkboard, stroking his chin thoughtfully, before deciding to stick with a sandwich and a coffee.

"Coffee'll stunt your growth." Envy snickered, "Why don't you have milk?"

Ed shot him an attempt at a wounding glare, but Envy only continued chuckling under his breath, returning an innocent smile. He'd only recently discovered Ed's rabid hate for milk, and liked to use it to his own advantage; whether as a bribe or a joke.

"Let's eat!" Gluttony declared excitedly, already chowing down on a hot dog from the mound on his tray. With his sandwich and coffee, Ed led the way across the cafeteria to an empty table, where he sat next to Envy and across from Gluttony, who easily took up as much space on the bench as the other two did theirs.

The students around them kept their distance, luckily for the three, as Gluttony obliviously tore through his diminishing mound of food, and Envy casually stole sips of Ed's coffee, forcefully keeping his attention on his two friends rather than anyone around, hoping to blend with the crowd.

He'd been successful until it came time to leave along with most of the other students to find better things to do with their time out of class, when crowds of paired eyes watched them intently, tearing away only long enough to whisper amongst one another.

They were nearly free from the room when a burly jock planted himself firmly inside of them, grinning smugly.

"Get out of the way." Ed attempted to brush past the guy, but he easily shoved the smaller boy back against Envy and Gluttony.

He stepped closer to Envy to loom over him, grin never leaving his face as he watched the boy lower his gaze to the floor. "Yeah, that's right. Look at my shoes, yah fag. What're you doin' back here?" He shoved him roughly back against Gluttony.

Caught by Gluttony, Envy straightened himself and readjusted his shirt, but didn't try to pass the boy knowing it to be a fruitless attempt.

"Yeah," The _Queen Bee_ of the school that really couldn't be considered anything but a Barbie sauntered towards them with three inch heels. "What're _you_ doing back here? Didn't we teach you last time that you weren't wanted around here anymore?" She turned back to her group of clones, who all giggled eagerly, urging her on. She stepped closer to Envy, curling a lock of his long hair between her fingers; she'd always been jealous of his obvious natural beauty compared to her own plastic beauty, but would never have admitted. Tugging viciously, she tore out the lock of hair and held it victoriously over her head, strutting back to her friends.

Envy's face contorted with surprised pain, and he reached up to soothingly stroke his scalp. "What the hell was that for?" He snarled, stalking towards her and tugging wildly on handfuls of her own blonde hair before he could realize what he was doing and that it would only lead to more trouble for him.

The Barbie shrieked, bending over and sticking her rump out as she attempted to tear herself away from Envy, rather than fight him off, and in the process only tore out the handfuls of hair that he held.

"Cat fight!" Most of the jocks in the room hooted and whistled, while the remaining girls gasped in horror and a few even lunged at Envy while the others comforted their Queen.

Seeing them coming with just seconds to spare, Envy sprung up with surprising agility to the surface of a table, flipping away from their grasping hands as they tried to trip him.

Shooting a gaze over to Ed, Envy shrugged in response to his questioning expression. He didn't know how he'd ever learnt such skills as to get away from people; this agility, it was all new but came to him like an old habit or reflex.

Realizing the girls were incapable when it came to bringing down Envy, several of the jocks ran after him, but they, too, fought a fruitless battle. Envy easily swerved and ducked from their lurching attacks, amused with their attempts until they were all called off. Envy skidded to a stop, alone in the center of the room, facing the crowded popular tables. A particularly large football player pushed through the group, holding Ed with his hands behind his back and a fat hand over his mouth. Ed fought, but couldn't get out of the larger man's grasp.

Envy started towards the group, believing perhaps he could do something for Ed until a small handful of familiar bullies stalked towards him, and his confidence was clouded by years of abuse.

Envy backed up, hands out in front of him defensively; the three coming closer only snickered at his seemingly futile attempts as two lurched forward and held his arms to his side, leaving the third planted firmly in front of him.

Envy raised his gaze to defiantly lock eyes with the pair before him, but instead of his anticipated respect earned a backhanded smack across the face. His head tore to the side, and he groaned softly, hair curtaining his face.

"That's what I thought; y'faggot." He snarled, grinning when he saw Envy's shoulders beginning to tremble. He turned to boast to his friends that he'd made the fag cry, until Envy's snickers rose in volume.

"This is no laughin' matter!" He hollered angrily, punching Envy with all his might just below his ribs.

His frail body bent over as far as it could with the two holding him on either side, but he only continued to laugh, until he threw back his head and cackled.

"Me? A faggot?" He lowered his face to lock eyes with the boy in front of him again. "Remember your dead friend? Well," He swung his head to the side, brushing his hair from over his face. "I bet you didn't know that _he_ was as just as much a _faggot_ as I am?"

Knowing that Envy was subtly hinting to the shower rape, the jock before him growled and lurched forward, latching a hand to his shoulder and curling the other into a fist to repeatedly pound into Envy's stomach.

Envy went silent, bent over with his hair over his face, coughing back the pain. The two holding him let go, and he fell to his knees on the floor. He began to laugh again, "Yes, this is just the position he had me in."

"You forced him!"

"You can't force the willing," Envy spat on the jock's shoes. "He came in my mouth, and the last time I checked that usually means you liked it." He rose shakily to his feet.

His angry assailant lunged forward, tackling him to the floor, and in a perfect example of brawns over brains, began to beat his fists into Envy's chest and face rather than orally fighting it out.

After Envy's arms fell limp to the tiled floor beside him, eyes closed, the jock figured his job had been carried out and straightened up, panting loudly.

His lips quirked into a grin before his eyes parted widely, and Envy spoke; "At least you fight it out like a real man rather than shoving your cock down my throat like your faggot friend." He cackled.

The jock held back a threatening fist, ready to strike again but two others tore him away from the laughing boy.

"Don't worry about it, man." One assured him.

"It's not worth it; he's fucked up." The other nodded in agreement as they all watched Envy slowly rise unsteadily to his hands and knees, spitting a puddle of saliva and blood to the dirt encrusted floor, still laughing his cold snicker.

"What the fuck? You're going to just let him get away with this?" The Queen Bee stalked towards the four, heels flicking obnoxiously on the floor. "Fine; I'll take care of this!" She hissed, pulling a nail file out of her hand bag and lunged at Envy, ready to get him back for screwing with her friends, and hurting their pride.

Envy saw her coming, but with slowed reflexes skittered from her target zone just in time to earn him a deep scratch across his arm rather than a stab through the shoulder. He stared at her, clasping his bleeding arm.

"Why the hell is that thing so sharp?"

The Barbie grinned, holding the file pointed end up. "For cleaning under your nails." She giggled cheekily, swinging at Envy again, but as he jumped from her aim she fell to the floor.

Envy stood back to laugh, but then noticed everyone else in the room all collapse in unison as the floor rumbled below them. He didn't understand, until he noted Ed rising slowly from the floor; alchemy.

"Envy; c'mon!" Ed hollered, running for the doors of the cafeteria, with Gluttony and Envy in tow.

**AN: **W00t for psycho Envy. Reminds me of the scene in Fight Club when Brad Pitt is being beaten, but only continues cackling. Creepy.


	17. Chapter 17

**Title:** Allotted Design.

**Pairing: **Envy and Ed.

**Rating:** PG-16 for brief language.

**AN: **Co-written by Amanda.

**My DEEPEST apologies for the wait; I overdid this story in the beginning, and got tired of it for a while. And then I finally finished this chapter up and I was banned from the internet for a while. **

**XD**

**Also, I've very nearly got chapter 18 finished too**

Once they were a safe distance away from the school; a couple blocks down and hidden amongst a pile of bushes, Ed gave Envy a bit of an uncertain smile.

"What happened to you back there?"

"Whatever do you mean?" Envy casually licked a bit of drying blood from his lip, and smiled sweetly, barely out of breath from the fight and their run to safety. Ed decided to ignore Envy's uncharacteristic behavior, and peered over the bushes to make sure they hadn't been followed; luckily, they hadn't.

"Where now? Where?" Gluttony grinned dumbly, tugging on Envy's thin arm without a second thought that maybe Ed would have a better idea than Envy.

"Perhaps we should just head back to the hotel where it's safe? We'll tell Mrs. Pactrony that you got sick, or something." Ed spoke first, and without waiting for an answer reached for Envy's hand and led him from the bush; Gluttony obediently followed behind much like an old, faithful dog.

Luckily they were able to make it safely to the hotel without any more run-ins with previous students that still held a grudge; but they breathed sighs of relief too soon; as they took their last steps onto the elevator, and the doors were sliding closed, a familiar, tattered sneaker shot between the doors and pried them open.

"Mrs. Pactrony!" Ed cried in surprise, although he'd seen her approaching and only hoped they'd make it to their own floor and room before she could catch up. When Ed elbowed Envy in the ribs as a hint to act sick, Envy curled an arm protectively around his chest and winced a bit; his face even seemed to flush with a light pink suggesting fever.

"What are _you_ boys doing here? You're supposed to be at the school and in classes!" She eyed the fat man cowering behind them.

"Well, y'see, we _were_ at the school… and we tried to get a hold of you, but Envy seems to have fallen ill and he couldn't make it through another class." To prove his point, Ed motioned to the grimacing boy at his side, and wrapped an arm around his back as if to comfort him in this moment of false pain.

Mrs. Pactrony narrowed one eye while the other seemed to bulge farther than normal from the socket. "Well… Alright; go to your room and rest; be ready for a new assignment tomorrow." She stepped out of the elevator, but before the doors could close safely between them she added; "And I want a 2,000 word essay on why illness is not a good excuse for tomorrow morning."

Sighing in relief at their near failed escape, Envy curled an arm around Ed's narrow shoulders and hugged him close. No one spoke as the elevator slid slowly to their floor, and dinged before opening; they robotically walked to their room, unlocked the door, and closed it behind them. Gluttony obediently sat on the floor in the corner of the room, and seemed to fall asleep against the wall while Ed led a reluctant Envy to the bathroom. "I need to clean your cuts."

Despite his grumbled protests, Envy sat on the down toilet seat and stripped his multiple layers to bare the cut on his arm. "Fuckin' Barbies and their stupid nails, and their high maintenance…"

Ed expertly poured a strong disinfectant on the cut, "Lord knows where her nails have been." and smoothed a fine layer of soothing salve on the wound and surrounding skin, then bandaged it. Wetting a hotel logo branded face cloth; he carefully washed away the blood caked to Envy's cracked lips, all the while forcefully not acknowledging how Envy avoided his eyes.

Finishing the application of healing salve and bandages with a little kiss, Ed stood back and admired the pale boy sitting before him. Although he'd gotten mentally stronger since arriving to the preparatory school, Envy had gained little-to-no weight; he hardly seemed to eat, and it showed on his protruding bones. This visit to the town where it all began would hardly help his state.

"I'm sorry that had to happen." Envy was first to break the silence, passing by the shorter boy to seek out a clean shirt.

"It wasn't your fault; there's no need to apologize… I should have done more to help you. If anything, it should be me that's sorry." Ed followed him and sat at the foot of one of the beds. Expecting Envy to join him for a resting nap, Ed crawled up to dig himself under the covers. But as soon as he'd donned a clean white shirt, Envy plopped down in Gluttony's lap; the fat man didn't open his eyes, nor seem to acknowledge the tiny man in his arms except for wrapping his pudgy arms protectively around Envy's frame. Ed sighed in defeat; he hated to think his Envy didn't feel safe with him, but at the same time he knew that Gluttony had been the one to protect and take care of him all the years prior to meeting Ed. Not to mention how Gluttony's abundant rolls of fat would surely play a part in making Envy feel safely surrounded.

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"Ed. Edoo! Time to get up!" What is this insistent cooing? Swatting a hand wildly around, Ed barely made contact with a flutter of hair before he pulled the covers up over his face and dug himself deeper. Boney fingers poked him through the thick comforter, and Ed groaned in protest, then threw the blankets down and bared himself to the persistent Envy.

Envy was smiling from ear to ear, and clearly wired on more caffeine than had been left complementarily in their room; with a survey around the room Ed could tell that Envy had made at least one journey from the room.

"I brought you breakfast!" Envy fetched a tray from the nearby table, and sat it carefully on the bed beside the tousled Ed. "There's a muffin and toast, and bacon and eggs and hash browns… and coffee! Of course."

"Wow." Ed eyed the overflowing tray of food. "I don't know if I can eat all this. You're welcome to help me." He gave Envy a bit of a suggestive smile.

"Nah," Envy shook his head, petting his flat stomach. "I already ate. But whatever you can't eat Gluttony will."

"Gluttony will! Gluttony will eat!" The fat man across the room screeched excitedly. Ed only laughed and dug hungrily into the breakfast.

After Ed had finished eating and showered, the trio made way from their room and to the lobby to receive assignment. In his hand Envy clutched the assignment he'd written, as was requested from Mrs. Pactrony, and he still smiled broadly. His mood didn't seem at all faltered with memories of their previous day, but Ed was in no hurry to burst his bubble by bringing the events back up.

**AN/ Guys. Guys. I'm wearing an 'I heart Yaoi shirt'. hurrah. **

Mrs. Pactrony's eyes grew in immediate surprise when Envy dropped the written assignment on her makeshift desk in one of the hotel's conferences rooms; she too hadn't expected it to actually be done.

"I did as was requested." He said with a triumphant smile, a hand on each slender hip. "Now what is it we have to do for today?" He seemed almost eager to get out and about around the town.

"Well," Mrs. Pactrony cleared her throat and shifted in her seat. "I'm reassigning you; _just_ you. Ed, you will be grouped with another pair for the day."

"But Mrs. Pactro—"

She waved Ed to silence. "There will be _no_ negotiating. Envy," She turned her attention back to the tallest of the three. "It seems you are from around here, am I correct? A certain…" She paused to check a slip of paper on her desk. "Dante and Greed Culus were in to see me early this morning, and as your parents, they requested that you be passed over to spend the day with them. I was informed you had not been home once since arriving to the school, even though most students go home every few weekends."

"Envy needs to get his work done, especially after he didn't get the assignment for yesterday done." Ed held tight to Envy's arm; already Envy's body had tensed with the thought of seeing his parents again.

"I know that, Edward, but let's just say; they were very … persuasive." She deliberately averted her eyes. Again she silenced Ed's protests as she rose to her feet. "My decision is final; Envy, your parents are to be waiting outside the hotel within ten minutes to pick you up, and Edward, I've paired you up to work with Marcus and Tarl today. And you… Well, you just go back where you came from." She barely eyed Gluttony as she spoke to him, and turned her back to signify she was finished with them.

With a sigh of defeat from all three, the trio trudged from the conference room; Gluttony continued across the spacious lobby and disappeared outside without a good-bye.

"Wait," Ed tugged Envy behind one of the wide columns lining the entire room. "Is this a good idea?" He paused. "Stupid question, I know; we can't just hand you over to them. I mean, surely they're out to get you with just as much determination as the students yesterday, if not more!"

"Shh, Edo, I'll be fine." Envy cooed, smiling sadly as he combed his fingers through Ed's blonde bangs. "I know now that if they try to do anything, there _is_ something I can do to stop them; I can flee and get help. I've learnt now, with you, that I don't deserve the punishment from them. Don't worry." His reassurance was but a fruitless attempt to calm the troubled boy. Ed nodded, staring at their feet and the vibrant red carpet.

"Okay. Listen; I'll give you my cell phone, a—and it has Marcus's number in the directory. If anything happens, just call… we'll be there in a heartbeat."

As an extra precaution Ed programmed Marcus's own cell phone number into speed dial, while Envy scribbled down the directions to Dante and Greed's house, should they end up there and he be in need of help.

With a quick kiss and tight, reassuring hug, the two detached and ventured for the outside; immediately in front of the main doors Dante and Greed waited, leaning against a sleek black car. For a moment Ed was almost allured by Dante's polite, but stern smile, and Greed's casual grin, but then seeing how Envy seemed to shrivel deep inside himself as he walked closer to them, Ed grit his teeth and fought the urge to run to his love and protect him from any and all harm.

Waiting by the fountain in the center of the courtyard between the car and the hotel doors, Ed watched Dante and Greed approach Envy, but he couldn't tell what they said. Envy nodded, and flinched away from Greed's touch as the man pulled his son in for a hug, but didn't pull away.

"Hey, Edward!" A voice called from the hotel doors; Marcus was coming out and waving to the blonde, and by time Ed turned back Envy was already locked into the car and driving away. His pale face reflected through the glass window, and he gave a sad, little wave.


	18. Chapter 18

**Title:** Allotted Design.

**Pairing: **Envy and Ed.

**Rating:** PG-16 for language and mild violence.

**Two chapters in the same day? What has the world come to!**

**My apologies for any spelling or grammatical errors; I was a bit rushed reading this over so to get it online before I go to bed, and had no one else to read it over for me. **

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"Guu-uuys, do you like, know where like, the bathroom _is_?" The young woman twirled a strand of her neon blonde hair between two tanned fingers. Ed nearly bit a chunk out of his clipboard and spat it at her, but decided against it in fear that it would puncture her implants and he'd be soaked in silicone through to the bones.

"Oh, yeah," Marcus pushed his way ahead of Ed and Tarl, grinning and adjusting his hair as he stood close behind her and pointed down the hallway to their left. "Just down there past the book store."

"Thanks!" The woman's high pitched voice was nearly enough to pierce the ear drums of a dog, but luckily she skittered off as soon as she had some idea where she was going.

"Dude, sick!" Marcus pointed after her and at the red blotch staining the back of her white pants.

Ed laughed a bit, "That's what you get for checking out every girl we've passed today." He sighed and checked his watch for the umpteenth time that hour.

"Fuckin' period blood." Marcus returned his attention to his own clipboard and their current assignment; they'd been given a scavenger hunt in the local mall, but due to its size and the lack of intelligence in most of their group, they hadn't made it far despite the hours they'd already spent wandering the labyrinth of stores.

"Are you sure your phone is still on? Maybe you turned the ringer off and forgot."

"Dude, I would have felt the vibrations. Calm down, I'm sure your little boyfriend is fine. Let's just get this done an' over with. We just gotta find sixteen stickers with the school's emblem, and then we're done."

The trio had only just boarded a local transit bus when Marcus's cell phone rang. Ed lunged at him and nearly tore his pants off in attempt to get the phone from his pocket; sure enough it was his own cell phone number on the display.

Fumbling to hit the button, he raised the phone to his ear. "H—Hello?" At first there was no response, only a few incoherent voices yelling in the background, and then the recognizable wail of sirens. "Hello? Envy?"

"Is this Mr. Edward Elric?" A deep voice finally answered him.

"Uh, yes, it is. Is Envy there? Is he okay?" The sirens seem to get louder, but he quickly realized they weren't growing louder through the phone, only closer to him in person; just then an ambulance passed the mall full speed with its lights flashing and sirens wailing. "Oh my god…" Ed murmured into the phone, clasping a hand over his mouth.

"Listen, sir, I can't talk now but I need you to meet us at the hospital; just go to reception and they'll tell you where to find Mr. Culus."

"But wait, please!" Ed cried desperately, but his only response was a click on the line and then dead silence.

"Dude, what's going on?" Ed raised his head to meet Marcus's eyes, barely acknowledging the stares he was receiving for his sudden outburst from the other passengers on the bus.

"It's Envy; we have to go to the hospital and find him."

The woman sitting across from them leaned close. "The hospital you say? This bus goes to the hospital, but it's not for a few stops." She stood in the center of the aisle. "Hey, driver, there's an emergency; y'think you could skip a few stops and go to the hospital right away?"

"No can do, lady, it's against regulations." The driver tugged the crank to close the folding doors, and pulled the bus from the parking lot. The woman walked to the front of the bus, steadying herself by holding onto the silver railings lining the aisle.

"Excuse me? Did you not here me? There is an _emergency_; I bet if there was a sudden emergency with someone you're close to you'd drive straight to the hospital and forget us passengers."

"Here, here!" A bearded man near the back called, pumping his fist into the air. Ed had to chuckle a bit through clenched teeth; despite all the bad he'd heard about this town, the people seemed willing to go to extents to help someone in need, even a stranger.

The driver didn't speak again until they were stopped at a red light, when he turned to face all the passengers. "Alright, I'll do it, but this ain't gonna become a regular thing! Just this one time, any protests?"

No one spoke up, so he turned his attention to the road again and floored the gas immediately with the green light. The passengers lurched back, but no decisions to skip the stops seemed faltered as they all chuckled nervously.

Ed was on his feet before the bus had even stopped in front of the hospital; as he passed other passengers down the aisle, some touched his arm and others only smiled. "Good luck."

Marcus and Tarl followed suite as Ed ran through a side door, not taking the time even for the rotating doors. Once inside, he paused to read the directions hanging from the ceiling; no hints as to where to go, so he ran forward to a woman sitting at a desk.

"Excuse me, I don't know where to go—"

"Just read the directions, sir." The woman didn't bother to look up from her magazine.

"Yes, but you don't understand, I have to hur—"

"No sir, I don't think _you_ understand." She pointed to the small _closed_ sign resting on the edge of the desk. That was enough to set Ed off; with a mixture of annoyance, exhaustion and desperation, he flung the sign off her desk and crashing to the floor amongst a few papers and pens.

"You will tell me where to go!" He hissed with a finger pointed threateningly in her face. She only nodded, and slowly lowered the magazine. "An ambulance brought someone in earlier; Envy Culus, where can I find him?"

"H—Hold on." She turned in her swivel chair to her computer and typed in Envy's name. "He's still logged as unknown, but it says here they expect to have him logged in ICU within another two hours."

"ICU? Two hours? Oh Jesus." Ed tore at handfuls of his tousled hair.

"Listen sir, just calm down."

"I will _not_ calm down!" Ed spat, leaning over her desk and in her face. She cowered back, and passed him a small, laminated card.

"T—This'll get you through to the ICU waiting room. Just go to the elevators down the hall, go to the fourth floor and then to your left." She waved her hand around as little to no help at all; Ed barely caught the end of her instructions, already running for the elevator.

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"Mr. Elric?" An elder man in a crisp lab coat stood in the doorway; Ed could have kissed his feet in praise for finally being called upon.

"Yes! That's me!" Ed jumped to his feet and ran for the man, who only smiled politely and raised his clipboard to eye level.

"You're here for Mr. Culus, correct?" He peered at Ed through thick rimmed glasses; Ed nodded. "Perfect, follow me." He turned and led Ed through a set of swinging doors; without being told Marcus and Tarl knew to hang back; this was Ed's time. "We haven't yet been able to find out what exactly happened to him, but he was picked up just outside the city after calling 911 on a cell phone. He then demanded that one of the attendants in the ambulance call you, which was done, correct?" Ed nodded again. "Wonderful. We've fixed him up as best as we can right now, but he's gone through quite a bit of trouble."

"Oh god." Ed whimpered, wringing his hands nervously. The doctor stopped outside a closed door, and placed a hand comfortingly over Ed's.

"Don't worry; he'll live, and heal to be as good as new within a few months." He smiled reassuringly. "But before you see him, I wanted to warn you that there is a fair bit of bandages, and he's hooked up to an IV and several other machines; but no worries, we're only monitoring him as a precaution."

"T—Thank you." Ed fidgeted, wanting only to be by his Envy's side.

"Now listen, he isn't awake yet from us putting him under for closer inspection, but I'd expect him to wake any time now." The doctor finally stepped aside and motioned for Ed to enter the room.

The sight immediately before him upon entering the room was barely enough to drown out the haunting beeping of the various machines clogging the wall around the hospital bed. Envy's frail form was barely outlined by the white sheets that seemed to envelope him entirely, but it wasn't enough to cover the sight of the casts on both of Envy's wrists, and the bandages; one entirely circled his head, and just the edge of a large one poked out around his neck from under the hospital gown.

"Oh god." Ed nearly broke down at the sight of his Envy in such bad shape. He staggered over to the bed and collapsed into a cushioned seat set complementarily beside the bed; Envy's chest barely rose with each shallow breath through cracked lips; already a large bruise was forming on a cheek bone, illuminating a dark cut in the center. "Ohgodohgodohgod, I should never have let you go with them!" He wanted to touch Envy; to feel his warmth and to reassure himself that the boy was still alive, but he was scared to hurt him even more.

The doctor stood in position at the foot of the bed, frowning at the grim situation before him. "_Them_? Who are _them_, Mr. Elric?" When Ed didn't answer, he cleared his throat and asked again, more persistent. "If you have any information on who may have done this to him, you must tell me so they can be caught!"

"No," Ed shook his head and babbled between pitiful little moans and cries. "I can't; I'm sorry, doctor, but it'll only make things worse."

"Very well." The old man sighed in defeat, but scratched something down on the clipboard before lowering it to his side. "He suffered multiple breaks in both wrists, three fractured ribs and a bruised lung, a twisted ankle which we've bandaged for support, and quite a bump to the head, although there are still no signs of a concussion or brain damage. Other than that it's all just bumps and bruises; he should be up and as good as new within two – three months tops."

"Even with broken ribs?"

"Well, ribs honestly heal just as quickly as a broken arm or leg; they're only far more painful. We've already opened him up to correctly reposition the ribs, though we cannot immobilize them with a cast like we would with something like a broken arm in fear of causing severe lung problems, such as pneumonia, or even a collapsed lung. Really all we can do is give them time to heal on their own, but considering that our ribs move whenever we breathe, it's quite a difficult and painful process. Either way; he's alive and that's what we should be happy for right now."

Ed nodded and eyed the colorfully bruised boy before him. "I should have been there to help him." He murmured to himself, burying his face amongst the blankets at Envy's side. The doctor watched for a moment, then hooked the clipboard to the foot of the bed and left the room.

Ed had finally calmed down when Envy's eyes first fluttered. Almost immediately his face contorted in pain, and he groaned, catching Ed's attention.

"Envy! Oh god, Envy, does it hurt?" He jumped to his feet, prepared to help although he knew there was nothing he could do.

"It does." Envy wheezed, nodding his head but the expression that immediately after donned his face was enough of a confession the movement had only jostled more pain through his head and body.

"H—Hold on, I'll get a nurse." Ed turned to run for the nurse's station, but already a woman in white was entering the room.

"He's awake," She began.

"And in pain!"

"Calm down, sir, I'll give him another shot of morphine and that will calm him down for a while." The nurse dug through a syringe filled cabinet beside the bed, and then pulled out a particular one, shed its plastic wrapper, checked for air bubbles and immediately injected the morphine through Envy's IV. Almost immediately Envy's face smoothed and his breathing slowed, a tiny bit of a smile curling his lips.

"Better?" The nurse leaned over the bed; Envy barely nodded, still in fear of more pain. She smiled, and turned to leave the room. "I'll be back to check on him soon."

"How can someone be so cheerful in such a morbid atmosphere?" Ed shook his head in disbelief, and turned back to his precious Envy. Leaning forward over the crisp white sheets with eyebrows furrowed in disbelief, he delicately stroked Envy's bruised cheek. "Oh Envy, I'm so sorry I allowed something like this to happen to you."

Envy's eyes didn't open, but his lips twitched a bit further into a pained smile before parting to murmur "Don't worry, Edo."

"Is the morphine making you feel better?" Ed entwined his fingers with Envy's, and though he _was_ on the heavy pain killer, he was careful not to jostle the cast bound wrist.

"Yeah, a lot."

"That's good…" The room fell to a heavy silence, periodically cut with slivers of high pitched beeps from the various machines hooked to Envy. "_They_ did this to you?"

"Yeah."

"I'm sorry." Again; the silence.

"Ed? You know, the police'll get involved in this, and they'll figure out who I am; they're still looking for me for that murder."

"Shit…" Ed slouched back, further amongst the cushions of his chair. He couldn't help but wonder how many people had cried and said good-bye to their loved ones in this chair. "Can't you just tell them the truth? That it wasn't you? That _is_ the truth, right?"

"Of course it is." Envy's voice was gradually growing quieter. "But I can't just hand Gluttony over to them."

"Can't you tell them the truth; that it wasn't you, without telling them it was Gluttony?"

"I could, but they probably wouldn't believe me; everyone in this town is against me, even my parents would probably vouch for the aspect of me being the murderer and being sent away again." His voice faltered slightly at the mention of his parents.

Ed could tell the sedative side of the morphine was kicking in, and Envy was slowly drifting farther and farther from reality, so he allowed the touchy subject, no matter how urgent it was, to drop.

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Having not planned to fall asleep, Ed was more than surprised to be jerked away by a heavy hand on his shoulder. He rubbed his eyes, trying to blink away the sleep before his eyes clearly focused on the man standing over him; it was a police officer.

"Uh," Ed coughed to clear his voice. "What can I do you for?"

"I think you know what I'm here for, sir." The officer forced a polite smile as he dug in a small pouch on his loaded belt and pulled out a small pad of paper. It had an elastic blocking the used sheets off from the fresh ones, and looked about as old as the officer himself; a town like this doesn't get much action.

"Well, perhaps we can wait until Envy is awake?" Ed shifted uncomfortably in the chair; he knew that putting off the conversation wouldn't look good to a man trained to notice shifty behavior, but at the time he didn't know what Envy would want him to or not to say.

"You're out of excuses." The officer pointed his pencil over Ed's shoulder; he turned to see Envy awake, though pale and his eyes were still heavy-lidded, obviously not fully there.

"How are you feeling?" Ed turned all his attention to Envy, reaching across to clasp a frail hand in his own. It took all he had to fight back tears at the sight of the man he adored in a state such as this, but it wasn't the time to cry. No, right now he had to be serious and strong for the both of them.

"Alright." Envy shifted ever so slightly, but didn't seem in pain where he would have been if he'd been without the morphine still plugging his system. "Feel about ready to pass out again." He smiled sheepishly.

"That's understandable; you've been through a lot, and you'll be able to rest again soon as I get a few answers from you." The officer didn't bother to pull up a chair, but rather just stood with his feet planted firmly to the floor near the foot of the bed, eyes shifting below bushy eyebrows from the two boys before him to the notepad in his hand as he frantically scribbled down notes.

"Who did this to you?"

"I don't know."

"That's a lie, sir, and we both know it."

"Alright," Envy sighed. "It was my parents; Dante and Greed Culus."

"Can you give me their address?" Envy did. "Good. And why did they do this to you?"

Envy nibbled on his bottom lip with a bit of uncertainty, not sure how far he should go to tell at a time like this. "I don't know; they don't like me."

"Did you do something to deserve this?" The cop arranged all of his attention on Envy now, surely trying to suggest that Envy had a part in the murder just a few months ago.

"No." Envy replied sternly without hesitation. "Never."

The cop took a moment to scribble down a few more notes, then tucked his pen behind his ear and stepped closed to Envy, brow furrowed with determination to get Envy to admit to something.

"I'm sure you remember the murder of a student at the local high school not too long ago; according to reports I've received from the officers who handled that situation, you'd had a past with the victim, and he was killed soon after many reported he was planning to… sexually abuse you. Does this have anything to do with you suddenly leaving the city that same day?"

"I left because I knew I would be blamed."

"So you're telling me you're innocent?"

"Of course he's innocent!" Ed leapt to his feet; the anger he'd previously held in over the officer's ignorance now boiling over and stemming a new urge to protect Envy. "Why would he have willingly come back if he'd murdered someone here?" He kept out the part where Envy hadn't actually come to the town willingly.

"Sir, please, calm down." The cop motioned with a large hand for Ed to sit again; the blonde huffed a bit, but when Envy nodded for him to sit, he did just that.

"You're not being fair."

"With all due respect, I believe I am being fair; I'm only trying to find out some information about what has happened; a lot of people in this town will give their lives to see this boy punished for the murder of the local teenager."

"Envy was just nearly killed by his parents! Why are you giving an incident that happened months ago priority over this?"

The cop took Ed's mood and expression of determination to prove Envy's innocence as a hint that it was his time to leave; with a tip of his hand and the reassurance that he'd be back within a couple of days to talk to _Envy_ some more, he left the two alone again.

"Frig."

"You didn't have to react quite like that, Edo. It was quite understandable why he was acting that way… the boy who was murdered had a lot more friends in this town than I do; I'm sure none of them would care about what happened to me, but only want me punished for what they think I did."

"Ehh…" Ed groaned in defeat and slouched lower into the chair until he was more on the floor than the cushioned seat. "I guess; it just made me so mad that he didn't seem to care about what had happened to you."

"Don't worry about it, Ed." Envy smiled reassuringly. "I've got you caring for me; that's all I need."


	19. Chapter 19

**Title:** Allotted Design.

**Pairing: **Do you even need to ask?

**Rating:** I just realized that half the time lately I've forgotten to change the rating from the previous chapter. Instead of rewriting all this shiznat, I tend to just erase the current chapter and start the next one in the same space. Woops! This one probably barely grazes PG-13.

**I'm reeeaaaaally sorry for the delay. I got caught up moving into a new house, and haven't been on the internet for the last… well, 2-3 weeks. And prior to that I have no excuse but the fact that I procrastinate far too much.**

**But…**

**Hurrah! Another chapter! At first I wasn't too sure where I was going with it, and I'm sad to say Rianne's suggestion of explosions and flying bodies wasn't too helpful… haha. **

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Within a week the officer hadn't returned, and though their fellow classmates had long returned to the prep school, Envy and Ed were given permission to stay behind for as long as Envy was hospitalized. At the week and a half mark the prep school administrator contacted the hospital and arranged for the couple to be transferred to a hospital closer to the school; they both knew that would mean Ed would have to return to classes, and Envy would be left alone for the remainder of his days in the hospital.

When the day came that they were to be escorted to the other hospital, a nurse was helping Envy off his bed and into a wheelchair when she was called away to an emergency in the children's ward. Sitting on the edge of his bed, Envy awaited the pain provoked by his ribs holding the weight of his upper torso, but it didn't come. Since his admittance to the hospital he hadn't been out of bed, and was so frequently doped up on morphine that he was barely given the chance to feel any sliver of pain. Until today; he knew it was close to the point where they'd want to give him another hit, and yet he still felt no pain.

"Hey, Envy, I got muff—what're you doing up?" Ed tossed the bag of suddenly forgotten breakfast treats on a table and rushed over to the bed. Envy waved him off, and slowly rose to his feet. "You shouldn't be moving so much on your own; you might knock your ribs back out of place, or... something. I don't want to sit here and have to watch your ribs poking out of your body." Ed crossed his arms over his chest, and Envy laughed a bit.

"No need to be so protective; I feel absolutely fine… no pain at all!" He hopped up and down a few times, ignoring the way Ed seemed to twitch with the urge to shove him back down onto the bed to rest.

"It must be the morphine…" Ed stroked his chin thoughtfully. The nurse from before bustled into the room just then, and dramatically gasped when she saw Envy moving around so much; gently pushing Envy back down onto the bed, she began to poke and prod at his chest, checking his ribs.

"You must not do that! You could hurt yourself… your ribs… you could have—this is weird, I'll be right back." She jogged from the room again, and the two could hear her calling for a doctor down the hall.

Within just moments the doctor had demanded that Envy be taken for another set of X-Rays, despite that it would delay their trip to the other hospital, and although he refused to tell them what was going on, it was obvious by his expression that it was something urgent.

Despite that he claimed he was fine to move and change on his own, a young nurse helped Envy into the appropriate gear for the X-Ray machine, and took several stills of his chest. The x-Rays were developed, and several doctors met to talk in hushed voices, then more X-Rays were taken.

The sun was setting and painting the room with a pale array of oranges and reds when the doctor finally made his way back to Envy's room, where he and Ed both lay asleep on the hospital bed.

The doctor flicked on the overhead light and cleared his throat a few times to catch the attention of the sleeping boys. Clutching the developed X-Rays in his hands, he immediately began to wave them over his head and hold them up to the light for the boys to see.

"It's a bit of a medical miracle! I've never seen broken bones heal so fast, let alone _ribs_!"

"So… my ribs are completely healed?"

"Yes! And even your lung has healed. I have no idea as to how this has happened, but if you wouldn't mind I'd like to keep you here for another week or so to run some tests. This is most interesting; I… well, we could even have an article about this published in medical journals!"

"Well, if I've no reason to stay in a hospital any longer, I'd really like to return to school." Envy explained slowly. The doctor's face immediately creased with a frown, and after another hour of trying to persuade the boys to stay, he left them for the night with promises he'd be back in the morning.

Now that they were alone, and the room was dark again, Envy was able to comfortably curl his arms around the blonde and hold in close again.

"Are you sure you don't want to grant them these tests? What if they were able to find something as a result of the tests that could help them to excel the healing process of other people's broken bones?" Although Ed couldn't see him, he could sense Envy smiling at his suggestion of good will.

"Well," Envy began quietly; brushing his fingers through Ed's free flying hair. "I don't know how to explain it, but I have an odd feeling about this… I don't think it's something I want to draw attention to."

"Why?"

"Edo, I just said that I don't know how to explain it!"

"Oh… right." Ed giggled a bit, and fumbled in the dark until he could draw their lips together in a long awaited kiss.

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The following morning they were both jostled awake when a stretcher bumped against the foot of their hospital bed. The nurse frantically apologized as she steered the stretcher across the room and behind the spread curtain closing off the back section of the room. Envy stretched, and for the first time since he'd been admitted to the hospital, he was able to smile with the knowledge that he didn't feel pain as he twisted into this feline position not because of the morphine they'd heavily doped him up on, but because he was fully healed. Of course, he was curious as to how he could've healed so quickly; he could remember times in the past when he'd broken bones, and they'd always healed as slow as they were supposed to, but for the time being he was overwhelmed with joy over being able to soon leave this town.

"Envy?" Although the blonde's eyes were open, he didn't look any more awake than he did just moments before, when they both slept soundly.

"Yes, Edo?" Envy settled back down amongst the tousled blankets, draping an arm across Ed's chest and fingering his messy hair.

"I…" He trailed off to yawn. "I had a dream that the doctors were only lying about your ribs, and when we left all of your ribs broke again, but you wouldn't let me take you back to the hospital. You let them heal on their own, but they ended up healing with your body stuck in a 90 degree position." He yawned again, and nuzzled his face against Envy's chest, almost immediately surrendering to sleep.

Envy smiled in amusement at Ed's dream, and then, holding Ed tight, fell back to sleep as well.

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When Envy awoke again, the room had dimmed to a pale blue; outside the open windows the sky was dark, and threatened a violent storm. A mixture of boredom and the urge to be aroused him from bed, and he'd barely tiptoed halfway across the cold floor when an unfamiliar voice called his name.

"E—Envy?" The voice cracked, and reminded him of the old Crypt Keeper show. He straightened, and looked around the room, but Ed was asleep and the door was closed. "Envy." Trying to take more notice of where the voice came from this time, he timidly peered around the pale curtain pulled across the room, blocking off the two halves.

"Who's there?"

"Envy!" The voice rose in pitch, but still crackled and the woman coughed haggardly a few times; it sounded as though she spewed out more phlegm and liquid than the expected foul breath.

"Who are you?" He silently approached the bed, squinting in attempt to see beyond the frail frame outlined by a thin layer of blankets to the face above, but the blankets only met empty pillow.

"Envy!" A hand shot up under the blankets, and even through the fabric he could clearly make out the outline of knobby fingers. "Let me out."

He nibbled hesitantly on his bottom lip, but reached out and slowly pulled the blanket down, revealing the sunken face of an elderly woman; he couldn't estimate an age, but she seemed more than due to be under the ground.

"Envy." She reached for him, but only caught a few wispy strands of hair as he ducked aside.

"Who are you?" He asked again, although hushed so to allow Ed to continue sleeping, persistence and annoyance were both evident on his voice.

"Don't you know?" Her fingers swept through the thin air, but still she couldn't reach him as he avoided each of her flails. "You should; you're just another part of me!"

This drew his interest, and he slid onto the edge of the bed, though still carefully out of her reach. "What? What do you mean? Y—You're not making any sense…" She waved him to silence and his senseless babbling trailed to nothing.

"You must listen…" She paused, cracked lips opening and closing over her crooked yellow teeth as she struggled to breathe. "You have to get out of this town; it's no good for you. I told them; you're too good for everything they have planned. Too good. You were always the best one."

He narrowed his eyes and stared at her through the darkness, "Listen Miss, I think you're mistaking me for someone else. Y'must've heard my name from one of the nurses."

"No, now you're just trying to make yourself feel better… they've passed their own denial to you." She coughed a few more times. "But listen to me; you have to… have to get out. Get out of this town. And stay away this time; don't come back, no matter what. Come back and they'll have you for sure." They both fell to silence, her to unconsciousness and him to his thoughts; what could she mean? Who was she talking about; surely not Dante and Greed, they only wanted him to beat upon whenever they were tired of fighting with one another, right?

Right?

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When Envy awoke the following morning, he at first didn't recall any of the events from the previous night. He yawned, and stretched, careful not to jostle awake the blonde at his side. Until it all came back with a flash of confusion; what had she meant?

"Wh—" Stumbling off the bed, he ignored the sleepy sounds of protest from Ed and clawed at the closed curtain between the two beds. But the bed was empty… no sign of the night before remained; the blankets were folded and placed carefully at the foot of the bed, and the pillow had been puffed to rectangular perfection.

"Mr. Culus!" Envy turned, wide eyed and flushed to face a nurse and doctor in the doorway of the room.

"You're up awful early!" The doctor declared with an amused chuckle, and then paused as he noticed the dry sweat across Envy's forehead, and his expression of despair. "Are you okay?" He moved closer and by reflex began to gently poke at Envy's ribs, as though believing they could have suddenly broken themselves again.

"No, I—I'm okay." Envy waved the doctor off, and turned back to the empty bed. "Where did the woman go? She—I was talking to her last night. Who was she?"

"I'm sorry, Mr. Culus, but I'm sad to say the woman that was in this bed passed away early this morning. But you say she spoke to you? She was barely hanging on yesterday; we're surprised she lasted as long as she did. But I'm glad she was able to talk to someone so nice before she went. Too bad about her, though. Hope she didn't say anything to startle you; she was long gone to a fever, and so most of what came from her mouth was gibberish." He smiled, and turned to his obligatory duties of checking Envy's statistics, before he and the nurse bustled back out to help the needier.

"But… I needed to know more." Envy sighed, gently fingering the fraying edges of the stacked blankets.

"Envy?" Ed murmured from behind him, stretching with a clumsy manner across the small bed. "What're you doin', come back to bed. It's still early." He yawned, and settled back down amongst the blankets, watching Envy with a lazy smile on his face.

"Ed," Envy climbed up next to the blonde, and softened against the arms that immediately wrapped around him. "Did you hear what the woman said last night?"

"What woman?" Ed buried his face against Envy's chest, and his eyes fluttered shut. "I didn't hear anything."

"Oh, she had some interesting things to say. I… well, from what I remember she was trying to tell me that someone had a plan for me, but that she felt I was worth more; she said I was always the best, but the best of whom?" He paused, only to note how Ed's breathing had fallen to shallow snoring, and smiled softly. "Yeah, I guess it probably wasn't anything."


	20. Chapter 20

**Title:** Allotted Design.

**Pairing: **Do you even need to ask?

**Rating:** PG

**Oooohemgee. I'm on a bit of a roll! What can I say; Pirates of the Caribbean 2 inspired me to write slash, but I'm making myself finish this one before I start anything new, ere I know I'll _never_ finish it. hah hah hah. –accusing point- PROCRASTINATOR! **

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As the following days turned to weeks, and eventually a month had passed, Envy and Ed returned to school and finished their courses, wrote and passed their exams, and prepared for separation as the school year sped to an end. As he spent time away from his home town, Envy eventually forgot, or perhaps simply blocked out, all memories of the night the strange woman spoke to him in the hospital. In the beginning he fretted over who could have plans for him, and what he was actually worth, but as days passed he began to question if she even knew who he was, or if the mention of a fever having overtaken her consciousness was true, until he didn't think of her at all except for a fleeting thought here and there.

"Y'know," Envy turned his attention from his half-packed belongings to the blonde across the room, sitting atop his own bulging bags. "I meant to bring this up sooner, but y'know, I was afraid that it would be a silly idea…"

He trailed off and Envy had to smile. "Nothing that comes from you could be a bad idea."

Ed chuckled, and nervously raised his gaze to Envy. "Well, I mean… I guess." He slid of his suitcase and crawled across the room until he perched before Envy, reaching for his hands. "I'll be going home tomorrow… And I hate to leave you behind."

"Don't worry," Envy smiled sadly. "The school year had to come to an end sooner or later… besides, we'll both be back for our final year within a few months." That promising thought was all that kept him from abandoning all hopes of surviving the summer.

"But what if we don't have to wait until next year to be together again?"

"What do you mean, Edo?"

"Well," Ed squeezed Envy's hands in his own and smiled. "I love you; a _lot_, and I know that Winry and Al would love you too… so, wouldyoupleasecomelivewithme?"

Envy swallowed heavily; the few seconds he took to formulate a coherent answer forced Ed to look away with assumptions and disappointment. "Of course, Edo!" He finally declared, and when the blonde turned back with a look of surprise, he gave him no time to answer before clashing their lips together in a relieved kiss.

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"This isn't how things were planned to go."

"No, but it will work. If nothing more, this'll make things easier. Now we wait for Envy to come of age."

Dante and Greed stood back and watched the two boys exchange smiles as they boarded the train together.

"Are you sure we'll be able to find them then?" Greed adjusted his small glasses on the bridge of his nose.

"Yes. Once it's time, Envy will find us."

"And until then?"

"Well, until then let them live whatever fantasies they've conjured for themselves."

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The End! Or… is it?

Actually, it's not. There's a lot more for this floating around my head. BUT… I figured if nothing else this was a good place to end it for now, so that I can relieve myself from the obligation of writing more chapters. Until I really want to write more, that is, which shouldn't be too long. I just now have too many other ideas floating around.

So keep your eyes open for more! And thanks to all the faithful writers out there. I only hope my future fictions will keep you as interested.

And, of course, a special thank you to Rianne for reading some of the chapters for me. Ahh, my faithful dictionary in human form. And another special thanks to Amanda for role playing with me for so many months, and giving me all the ideas for this story. Even when they come only from drunken rampages throughout our own mentalities.

TO BE CONTINUED…


End file.
